


Will You Still Love Me Even If I'm Nothing More Than A Memory

by beautifulmadness13



Category: Legacies (TV 2018)
Genre: Angst, F/F, Fluff, Happy ending hopefully, Henelope is Endgame, Posie happens but it doesn't last, my favorite crackship, probably sad cuz that's all I write, so I'm writing it MYSELF, we need more henelope in this fandom
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-17
Updated: 2020-06-25
Packaged: 2021-02-08 01:11:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 40,579
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21467587
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/beautifulmadness13/pseuds/beautifulmadness13
Summary: “You are obnoxious, you know that.”Hope scowled but her expression held no real malice and softened as soon as she saw the smile playing on her girlfriend's lips.“Yea, but you love me anyway.”“I really do Pen, I really do.”OrHope jumps into Malivore to save everyone and Penelope no longer remembers her, or does she?loosely based on s2 handon storyline but with henelope
Relationships: Hope Mikaelson & Josie Saltzman, Hope Mikaelson & Lizzie Saltzman, Hope Mikaelson/Penelope Park, Penelope Park & Josie Saltzman, Penelope Park & Lizzie Saltzman, Penelope Park/Josie Saltzman
Comments: 171
Kudos: 574





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again and welcome to my first henelope fic!  
I got this idea from @_PenPark_ on twitter so thanks girl I appreciate it!
> 
> henelope is the greatest crackship on legacies and they deserve more rep so I'm gonna give it to y'all, just be forewarned that there will be tears cuz that's basically all I write now.  
also Clark doesn't exist in this story cuz I don't care about him. My storyline basically follows the show's but some things are different cuz duh henelope and also I forgot some of the details of the episodes so I changed them a bit.
> 
> Enjoy!

_Sunlight filtered through Hope's open bedroom window. She could read the clock on her nightstand telling her that it was 9AM and she knew it was probably time to get up and start her day. But the halls of Salvatore were still fairly quiet save for the few students venturing out to the bathroom before scurrying back to the safety of their dorms. It was Sunday after all and no one had any classes. There were no outside obligations that she felt necessary to tend to right at that moment so she was more than content to continue to lay in her bed, the comforting weight of another body resting on top of her. Hope probably wouldn't move even if the school was on fire, feeling that the smoke inhalation would be worth it as long as the person sleeping in her arms was not disturbed._

_Gently she ran her fingers down the soft expanse of caramel skin available to her beneath the sheets covering them both. Up and down, barely-there touches traced the dips and curves of her lover's shoulders, back, and the dimples right above her... _

_Hope stilled when she felt the girl begin to shift. Her breathing changed and it was obvious that she was starting to wake._

“_Don't stop on my account, you were just getting to the good part.”_

_Hope rolled her eyes and smiled, even half asleep the smirk her girlfriend almost always seemed to be wearing could be heard in her voice. _

“_How is it possible that your libido is still unsatisfied after we spent the entire night most likely scarring everyone on this floor.”_

_The head lying on her chest lifted and Hope found herself staring into half-lidded green eyes._

“_This floor? Babe, I hate to tell you but I'm pretty sure the whole school could hear you last night."_

_Hope blushed deeply as her girlfriend laughed at her expense. She pushed the ravenette off of her but the girl kept giggling even as she rolled to the opposite side of the bed._

“_You are obnoxious, you know that.”_

_Hope scowled but her expression held no real malice and softened as soon as she saw the smile playing on her girlfriend's lips. _

“_Yea, but you love me anyway.”_

_The way the sun doused them both in its hazy light made the other girl almost seem to shimmer before her. Her eyes sparkled and her skin turned bronze in color. Even her hair, messy from sleep and last night's activities seemed to form a sort of ethereal halo around her head. “A literal Angel” Hope thought to herself and sighed._

“_I really do Pen, I really do.”_

_She pulled Penelope back into her then and pressed their lips together. Both girls smiling into the kiss, Hope reaching her hands up to tangle into black waves while Penelope cupped her cheeks._

“_I love you too you know.”_

_Penelope spoke softly when they pulled apart for air. They stared at each other for a moment. Both seemingly trying to memorize the details of the other's face. Though by now it was kind of pointless, they'd spent so long looking at each other that they probably knew their lover's reflection better than their own._

_The thin white curtains behind them swayed as a cool breeze flowed through and Hope could see the way Penelope shivered when the air touched her bare skin. Pulling the sheet back up around them she enveloped the other girl in her warmth and brought Penelope's face back to her own, pressing another gentle kiss to her pink lips._

“_I know.”_

~~~~~~

There are three things Hope is absolutely certain of.

The first is that she is a Mikaelson through and through. After both of her parents had died and her remaining family had sent her back to Salvatore school there was a brief moment where she had thought about pretending like she was someone else. She thought that maybe if she changed her last name and assumed a new identity then somehow her pain and grief would lessen. But then she remembered how proud her father was of who they were, the original vampires and hybrids, and how her mother never tried to shelter her from the truth of her legacy, no matter how gruesome. They had sacrificed everything for her and Hope couldn't wash all of that away by ignoring who she truly was. No, she is a Mikaelson, always and forever.

The second thing that Hope is certain of is that she is unmistakably and irrevocably in love with Penelope Park. The raven-haired girl had waltzed into her life halfway through freshman year and somehow without even trying she'd stolen Hope's heart and had yet to give it back, not that Hope wanted her to. Penelope was the first person to take a sledgehammer to her carefully built walls and create a doorway just big enough to squeeze her way through. She was there when Hope had accidentally sired that random wolf boy and comforted her through her parent's disappointment. She'd watched as Hope had almost been torn apart by the demon that once lived inside of her and had held the tribrid after she'd lost a third of her family. Penelope is the only person Hope trusts completely beyond a shadow of a doubt and she knows that Penelope feels the same way about her. They'd been dating for just over two years now and she could honestly say that they had been the greatest two years of her short life.

The final thing that Hope knows for sure to be true is that she is trapped inside of Malivore. After attempting to rescue Landon and fighting his stupid mud brother she'd realized that the only way to save everyone she cared about, the only way to save Penelope was to throw herself into the bubbling pit of nothingness. She had to snap poor Landon's neck after he realized what she was going to do because she knew he would try to stop her. But it was okay he was a phoenix after all. Calling Alaric had been the next step. She needed him to destroy every trace of her so that when her existence was wiped from their collective memories they wouldn't come searching for the stranger in all of their photos. He hadn't wanted to do it, of course, he loved her like a daughter and knowing that she was about to disappear forever had sent his fatherly instincts into overdrive. But after she explained to him that it was truly the only way and that she had really thought it through he'd reluctantly agreed. Talking to Penelope though had been the worst. She hadn't planned to because she knew it was selfish but she needed to hear the witch's voice one last time.

Penelope had answered the phone confused.

“Hope?”

She'd asked questioningly and just hearing her name on Penelope's lips was enough to almost make Hope breakdown. Tears fell freely down her cheeks but she did her best to pretend like there was nothing wrong.

“Y-yea it's me Pen.”

She heard Penelope suck in a small breath over the line and Hope knew that she hadn't done a good enough job of hiding anything from her.

“When are you coming home?”

Penelope's voice was quiet as if she already knew the answer to her question and Hope could hear how it wavered. Her heart shattered into a million pieces knowing that her girlfriend was in pain and that there was nothing she could do to shelter her from it.

She pulled the phone away from her mouth, buried it in her shirt then let out a short sob, her chest feeling heavier than it ever had. She hoped that Penelope couldn't hear her but had a feeling that she could.

“Soon babe, I promise.”

She spoke after she regained a little composure. She never lied to Penelope, couldn't even if she wanted to. The girl had always been able to read her like one of her many books so it was useless to even try. She knew that Penelope would be able to tell that she was lying now but Hope felt like she had no other choice, what else was she supposed to say?

Silence fell over them both and they listened to each other breathing for what seemed like hours but was probably only a few minutes. Hope counted each breath the other girl took, trying to memorize the pattern in her head and she wondered if Penelope was doing the same.

“Hope?”

Penelope's voice was barely above a whisper now and if it weren't for her wolf senses she might not have heard it.

“Yea?”

Hope answered a bit louder still trying to be the strong one for them both.

Penelope was silent again and the tribrid would've thought the line had gone dead if not for the almost imperceptible sound of sniffling on the other end. She was crying.

“I love you.”

Hope felt her lungs deflate and if there was a word to describe pure agony she's sure how she was feeling right then would be an accurate description. She thought about the last time she'd kissed Penelope and hoped that she had been gentle enough, thought about the last time she'd held her and hoped that she had been supportive enough. She played back through their relationship in her mind and hoped that in every moment they'd spent together she had been **enough** for the other girl. Because if she had then she would be able to leave knowing that Penelope had been truly happy with her and that she'd at least accomplished one important thing in her seventeen years of life.

“I love you too.”

When Hope had woken up all she'd seen was vast, endless darkness. After running around for a while screaming for anyone to respond to her she realized that she was alive inside Malivore. It was surreal and terrifying. She was completely and utterly alone in a place that she would be stuck in forever and no one that she knew would even remember who she was. But her main thought and the only one that she could really focus on was that the girl she loved more than life itself was alive in a world where she no longer existed and would have absolutely no idea that she ever had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you think? Let me know if you want more or if I should just stop writing now ;)
> 
> Don’t forget to comment/kudos  
Twitter: @posiewaves


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow okay so I didn't realize this many people love henelope  
I guess we're all crackheads who enjoy pain ;)  
thanks for reading and leaving all of those sweet comments, I really appreciate it <3
> 
> most of the chapters will alternate between hope and penelope's pov so now we're gonna check-in and see how our favorite witch is handling life without her girlfriend
> 
> enjoy!

Blue eyes and auburn hair.

Penelope has been having the strangest dreams. For the past several weeks these images have been filtering their way into her subconsciousness and she has no idea why. They remind her of pictures taken with a camera that has the zoom too close to make out what the scene is supposed to be. And yet they feel familiar to her somehow like she should understand what they mean and who they are of, but she doesn't. 

Lately she's been feeling like something is off. She can't understand it but when she's walking through the halls of Salvatore or sitting in class during a lecture, sometimes even when she's just watching Netflix in her room, she gets hit by a wave of something akin to Deja-Vu. Like she's done all of these things many times before but something about them is different now, missing.

She doesn't know what it is and thinking about it often gives her a headache so she usually tries to shrug it off along with the dreams. Still the feeling is always there in the back of her mind, like a secret that she once knew but now is being left in the dark about.

~~~~~~

Sitting in the cafeteria Penelope was listening to one of the witches in her circle drone on about her latest boyfriend drama.

She stabbed a cherry tomato out of her salad trying not to roll her eyes. It wasn't very polite to ignore her “friends” but honestly she didn't really care. Whether she actually paid attention to what they said or not didn't matter. At the end of the day they would still follow her around like the lost little puppies they were, begging her for scraps of attention. Nothing about their relationships were actually meaningful, usually they just wanted something from her. Status, popularity, power, and they knew she could give it to them. Because she is Penelope Park and here at this school as well as outside in the witch community her name means something. She had her parents to thank for that.

“Hey Pen.”

A soft voice filtered through her self-indulgent thoughts and Penelope's head snapped up to see a cute doe-eyed girl standing next to her.

Josie Saltzman had to be one of the kindest semi-humans Penelope had ever met. She's caring, smart, selfless and possibly a little bit in love with her. She'd been asking the green-eyed girl out for the last month and until recently Penelope had always politely declined.

Not because she didn't find Josie attractive, anyone with eyes could see that the leggy brunette was gorgeous and many had tried to get her attention because of it. No, Penelope could definitely understand the appeal but something about dating Josie just felt off, like it wasn't quite right. She couldn't explain it though and after a lot of pestering from her followers, Penelope had finally caved and accepted one of Josie's invitations to have lunch.

Well once had quickly turned into twice and now it was a fairly common occurrence. Everyone was beginning to get used to seeing the two of them together, not only in the cafeteria but hanging out in the library and in each other's rooms. At this point it was pretty much accepted that they were a couple even though they had yet to make it official. Because of this Josie had been getting a lot more physical with her lately, hugging and holding hands. They hadn't kissed yet but the witch had a feeling it was only a matter of time and she wasn't sure if she was looking forward to it or not.

“Hey JoJo.”

Josie smiled brightly at the nickname Penelope had coined for her and plopped her tray down beside the ravenette, taking the seat that the others had been leaving open lately specifically for her.

“I missed you today. It sucks that we don't have any morning classes together.”

Josie took a bite out of her sandwich and Penelope couldn't help but smile when she got a bit of mayo on her nose. The siphoner really was cute. Gently she reached up and swiped the condiment away with her finger, watching as Josie blushed lightly at the contact.

“Yea I missed you too.”

And it wasn't a lie. Even though Penelope isn't completely sure about her romantic feelings for the other girl she does know that she really likes her as a friend and loves hanging out with her. Josie is funny and sweet and when they're together sometimes she makes Penelope forget about the mysterious hole in her heart that she can never seem to fill.

“I was thinking that maybe we could study together after last period? It's such a nice day so I thought we might change it up and go outside. I'll even bring some snacks.”

The way that Josie's eyes sparkled at the prospect of getting to spend time with her made Penelope's heart speed up a little. How lucky was she to have this amazing girl who wanted nothing more than just to be around her? And yet she still couldn't quite shake the weird feeling...

“Sure JoJo, that sounds nice.”

~~~~~

When classes had finished Penelope made her way to Josie's dorm so the two of them could walk together to the place the brunette had picked for them to study. Josie carried a small picnic basket between them filled with cookies and sliced fruits and veggies that she had prepared herself, along with a blanket to sit on.

They ventured out into the courtyard and waved to other students that they knew, even stopping to talk to a few and pretty soon Josie's hand found it's way into Penelope's but the witch didn't object. They didn't stop until they reached a large oak tree, with branches extending up so high it almost seem to touch the sky. It really was a beautiful day and sun soaked the school's fields but there was plenty of shade here. It seemed like as good a spot as any so Josie got to work setting up their little picnic and Penelope helped.

She didn't want to say anything to the brunette but there was something about the tree that made Penelope feel drawn to it for some reason. Like she'd spent a lot of time underneath of it before, however until this afternoon she couldn't remember ever coming anywhere near it. Shaking her head a little Penelope settled on the blanket that Josie had laid down and started to pull out a few of her class supplies.

“So I was thinking we could start with History and maybe work our way down our timetables from there?”

Josie sat next to her with her own textbook already in hand and Penelope offered her a small smile nodding.

“Okay.”

Josie smiled back then opened the book to the chapter they left off on the last time they were together. She cleared her throat then began to read out loud, Penelope diligently following along until they would switch and it would be her turn, just like always.

Except that this time as she reads Penelope feels herself becoming overwhelmed by the familiarity from earlier. Sound begins to fade and she's getting dizzy, nauseous too. It's kind of like the world around her is spinning so fast she can't really see it anymore, like when she was little and rode on the Tilt-A-Whirl during the fall carnival. Going around and around and wondering if it would ever end. The feeling consumes her until she thinks she might throw up and then all at once, it stops.

_Her vision clears and she finds herself lying down beneath the giant oak with her worn-out copy of The Tempest in her hands from which she is reading aloud. Her words are confident and she tries to portray the roles as if they were watching it on stage. That's how she always reads Shakespear, with the same emotion she feels an actor would use. It's the only way to truly tell a story._

_Her head is resting in the lap of a person she can't see and their fingers are gliding gently through her hair. They seem to be entertained by her different voices though because she can hear them let out a soft chuckle when she transitions between the characters. The body she rests against is warm exuding heat and even though the temperature outside is on the hotter side today Penelope isn't uncomfortable. She's used to having to adapt to being around someone who's core temp is like that of a furnace. Everything is sweet and fuzzy like a sappy 70's romance film and Penelope feels happy, safe and loved._

_It annoys her though that she doesn't know who she's with so she tries to tilt her head up and look at their face. But it's like the sunlight streaming down on them has created a perfect shield to cover their identity because all she can see is a soft yellow glow. Filling the air around her is a scent that is so recognizable and comforting but she can't quite place it and for some reason it sends images of auburn hair and blue eyes flitting across her mind..._

“Penelope.”

Josie's voice shakes her from the trance and she looks over to see two concerned chocolate eyes staring at her.

“Are you okay?”

Penelope doesn't know what she is but 'okay' definitely isn't it. She has no idea what just happened. Was that a dream or something else... it almost felt like a memory. But that couldn't be it.

If it was a memory then why couldn't she see the person above her? Why did she have absolutely no frame of reference for anything that she'd just experienced until now?

Confused and a little shaken Penelope forced a smile.

“Yea Jo, I'm good. Sorry for zoning out like that. I think I'm just a little tired. Where were we?”

Josie nods understandingly, believing Penelope's words (because why would she lie?) then helps her find the place she'd been reading from.

Whatever that was she doesn't want to think about it right now, wouldn't know where to begin with it anyway. The lack of sleep she's been getting since the fragmented dreams began makes her wonder if maybe she's starting to hallucinate a little. That could be a reasonable answer for it right? Maybe not, either way it's too much for her brain to process and the beautiful girl she's spending time with is demanding her attention so Penelope tries to focus on her.

She's uneasy but they keep studying and for the rest of the afternoon Penelope doesn't have any more 'visions'. Although no matter how hard she tries she can't seem to forget the calm feeling of gentle fingers running through her hair.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay so like I said in the beginning we are gonna have some posie but don't worry this story is very much about henelope :) though it does feel weird to write posie like this cuz we all know they're soulmates.  
Anyway I hope you liked it and I'll see y'all soon with chapter 3 which is when the story really starts to pick up
> 
> don't forget to kudos/comment  
twitter: @posiewaves


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y'all!
> 
> okay so we are moving right along with this story and as I promised the plot is going to start to pick up from this point on so lets bust hope out of malivore and get ready for some tears!

Hope's lost count of how long she's been here, wherever here is. Hours and days meld together and there's no real way for her to keep track. If she's not wandering through the dark aimlessly then she's sitting on the cold ground lost in her imagination. She doesn't think she would've been able to survive if not for her memories. It's a little ironic though since the people she often finds herself dreaming about, the ones who stop her from going insane, probably don't know who she is anymore.

  
  


She's actually in one of those memories now.

It's the last day that she'd spent with everyone in the real world and it had been pretty chaotic. Triad soldiers had stormed Salvatore without warning and the students had formed an uprising to fight back, not to mention Josie got shot trying to play the hero. It was a lot, but thankfully everyone had ended up alive and safe, except for maybe her. She remembers when she had to leave and Penelope had asked her not to.

“_But why does it always have to be you?”_

_They as well as Josie and Lizzie were finally being let out of the cell they'd been locked in by a mindless drone in armour and Hope was sending all of the girls with MG to help the others. But Penelope had gripped tightly onto her hand and her green eyes were wide with desperation as she clung to the smaller girl not wanting to let her go, afraid that she might not see her again. _

  
  


“_Because I'm a badass tribrid and fire-bird Landon can't take on Malivore and his evil disciples by himself.”_

_Hope joked lightly trying to lighten the mood but Penelope's expression had remained serious as she stared at her._

  
  


“_Then I'm coming with you.”_

_Her voice was strong and certain and Hope knew that the witch would make good on her word. She also knew that Penelope could not follow her. If she was there Hope wouldn't be able to focus on anything but her safety, she might get distracted and make a devastating mistake._

_With her free hand she reached up to stroke soft black hair then cupped her girlfriend's cheek._

“_Babe I love you but no you're not. You need to stay here. Help everyone else. The twins need you more than I do, poor Josie can barely stand.”_

_Penelope had turned to Lizzie and Josie then, the blonde trying to support almost all of her sister's weight, and she knew that Hope was right. They did need her help here but that didn't stop her heart from wanting to go with the auburn-haired girl._

_She looked back at Hope who was still standing in front of her waiting patiently for Penelope to let go of her and finally the ravenette relented._

  
  


“_Fine, go. But promise me that you'll come back?”_

_Hope smiled and gave her lover a small nod._

“_I promise.”_

_Penelope had pulled her in for a searing kiss then and a hug that probably would've broken a few of her ribs if she didn't have wolf healing, before pushing her away and towards the door._

“_I'll see you tonight, I love you.”_

“_I love you too.”_

But Hope hadn't kept her promise and instead of seeing her girlfriend that night she'd had to say goodbye to her over the phone.

She felt tears running down her face thinking about Penelope crying over her never returning before remembering that Penelope wouldn't be sad. She can't miss someone she doesn't even know is missing. And Hope finds herself wondering if maybe that's for the best.

Then she hears something. A sound so faint she might not have picked up on it if not for the fact that she'd spent the last however many weeks in total silence. It almost sounded like a whistle or maybe wind.

Before she even had time to react a bright blinding white light appeared in front of her and it felt like knives in her eyes which had adjusted to the dark. She had no choice but to squeeze them shut and place her hands over her face. The wind sounds got louder and louder until it was almost deafening and Hope would've given anything to make it all stop, for the dark silence to come back again.

And all at once it did.

The light faded and the wind went away replaced instead by the sounds of crickets and rustling leaves.

  
  


“_What the hell?”_

Slowly Hope removed her hands from her face and blinked open her eyes, shocked by what she saw.

  
  


She was sitting in the town center of Mystic Falls.

  
  


~~~~~~

  
  


The Mikaelson had no idea how she'd ended up back in the real world. Maybe it was a fluke, maybe she was hallucinating or maybe Malivore had gotten so tired of listening to her cries that in order to shut her up he quite literally spit her back out. Whatever the reason Hope would be lying if she said she wasn't a little grateful to finally be in the land of the living again. And now that she was home her first instinct was to find Penelope.

She knew that there was still a good chance that no one would remember her but she had to at least go and make sure. After she saw that Penelope was okay then she would figure out what to do next.

As quickly as she could Hope made her way to Salvatore which on foot is quite the trek. It was night though and the cool air felt nice against her pale skin. She'd been so starved for sensation while in that hell dimension that her mind and body hungrily took in all of the plants, trees, and animals around her. She'd always loved nature but right now it all just seemed infinitely more beautiful.

By the time she'd reached the school, the moon and all its stars were settled in the sky and a calm silence had fallen over the large building. Walking through the halls she felt a small wave of nostalgia wash over her and it wasn't until she passed by a builtin board with the date that she realized just how much time had passed.

“3 months.”

She whispered to herself, eyes scanning over the calendar. The entire summer had passed and they were now entering fall again. She'd been gone for a whole season and yet everything still looked basically the same. How she managed to stay sane for three months in Malivore though must have been pure magic and she couldn't imagine doing it again.

  
  


Letting the shock pass through her system Hope picked up the pace a little, wanting now more than ever to see Penelope. They hadn't actually spent longer than a week apart since they had started dating and the more she thought about it the more anxious she became.

When she was standing outside of Penelope's door is when the hesitation finally set in. She wanted to knock, wanted to just walk right in and tell her girl that she was home. But it was the thought that Penelope might not recognize her which made her pause. Could she handle it if her girlfriend looked at her with confusion in her green eyes instead of the love that Hope was so used to finding there? She wasn't sure, but her desire just to look at the witch again after having to imagine her for so long was stronger than any fear she might feel about Penelope's reaction.

  
  


Hope pressed her hand against the door, lightly letting her fingers run down the wood paneling and it was almost like she could sense Penelope even with the barrier.

“She's not in there.”

  
  


The sudden voice interrupting her thoughts made Hope jump back and pull her hand away from the door as if she'd been burned.

She turned to face the person who had called her out, a slight blush crossing her cheeks at being caught.

“Oh?”

  
  


MG stared at her hard as if trying to place her and understand the situation before shrugging.

“Yea most of the dorms are empty right now.”

  
  


He was the first person to speak to her in months and seeing him again felt so good Hope was afraid she might start crying. She settled for a soft smile, taking in his features. He looked identical to when she had left but then he was a vampire so it's not like he would've changed much even if she'd been gone for 30 years.

His brown eyes watched her curiously and for a moment Hope wondered if maybe seeing her again was triggering some sort of repressed memory.

  
  


“Who are you?”

She felt her heart fall a little at his question. Even though she'd been preparing for it there was still nothing like looking at a person you care deeply for and knowing that they don't have the slightest recollection of who you are.

“I'm Hope.”

  
  


She stuck out her hand and he tentatively placed his in her own and gave it a shake in greeting.

“MG.”

  
  


She smiled.

“I might be transferring here from Mystic Falls High and I just wanted to check the place out. Maybe see what the rooms look like.”

  
  


“At night?”

  
  


She shrugged,

“I figured it didn't really matter seeing as how it's a school for supernaturals I assumed at least someone would be awake. And I don't really care for the loud noises and lights that the daytime usually brings.”

  
  


Hope spoke so casually that she surprised herself and almost instantly MG's cautious demeanor changed to one of welcome and he beamed his mega-watt grin at her that he usually reserved for newbies and giving tours to parents.

“I can understand that. In any case welcome to Salvatore. You picked a bad time to look around though, everyone is out in the woods. It's the back to school party tonight, you're welcome to join if you'd like.”

Of course, how could she have forgotten? It was basically a tradition at Salvatore and probably most other high schools to throw a party the first weekend back. Hope had never really been one to go but she knew that Penelope enjoyed them so she would most likely be in attendance.

It was clear to her that MG had been heading there himself when he'd seen her and stopped. He seemed in a hurry to head out now that he'd determined she wasn't a threat. Probably eager to drink with Kaleb and try to flirt with Lizzie who would more than likely shoot him down for the hundredth time, not that he would ever be deterred. Thinking about the predictability of her friends almost made her laugh.

  
  


“Awesome I'll think about it, thanks.”

He gave her a salute and she chuckled.

“It was nice meeting you Hope, maybe I'll see you around.”

“Yea, you too MG.”

Her face fell as she watched him turn and walk away. A sort of melancholy sadness settling into her chest. She was happy to know that he seemed to be doing well but if MG not remembering who she is upset her this much then she couldn't even imagine how badly it would hurt when she finally found Penelope.

~~~~~~

In the woods behind the school Hope wandered through the trees, lightly tracing the object in her pocket. She'd been quick to get outside after talking with MG but had stopped by one of the charms' classrooms first to grab a few magic totems, one of which was a crystal. She wasn't sure why she'd felt compelled to take it. Maybe it was because she'd been alone for so long and she wanted to make sure that if she ended up alone again she'd have someone to talk to, even if it was only her consciousness in the form of someone else.

_Anything is better than that suffocating silence._

  
  


She'd managed to find the party quite easily. Which made sense seeing as it was a large group of drunk teens in an otherwise empty forest and she'd stayed for a moment just to take it all in. Seeing the faces of all the people she used to share classes with was interesting when none of them were providing her with the awestruck stares they normally wore when she walked past. It didn't matter that she had known most of them since they were little kids, her name, her family and her status as the only tribrid in existence was still enough to draw attention. Add that to the fact that for a long time she didn't speak to anyone and it was easy to understand where their intrigue came from.

But now she was nothing more than a stranger to all of them. Another passing face in an already blurry crowd. It didn't bother her that much though. She was only there to find one person and she realized quickly that Penelope wasn't anywhere nearby.

It was easy to tell because wherever the witch went there was always a large swarm of moths following her. The band of bottle blondes and nose job princesses were like insects drawn to her light, though maybe Hope could relate to that feeling a little. There was something about Penelope, something beyond her last name that just made you want to be around her. She had this way of making you feel like the most important person in the world when her attention was solely focused on you, like no matter what you said she was listening, truly listening. Yea maybe she wasn't always the sweetest person to be around but that was just part of the appeal to Hope. She loved Penelope's biting snark and her brutal honesty, admired that the ravenette could not care less what others thought of her and would always share her opinions, even if no one really asked for them. Everything about her, from her flaws to her beauty was just one more thing for Hope to love and God help her if she isn't the most whipped girl on the planet.

  
  


So after noting Penelope's absence from the group of underage supernaturals she'd begun to walk, picking a random direction and just hoping that at some point she'd come across the green-eyed girl. It was kind of silly though, at least she thought so because the area was huge and for all she knew Penelope wasn't even in the woods anymore. She could be back in her dorm by now or maybe even in town. The chances of Hope accidentally bumping into her were basically slim to none but she was still going to try.

She started on a trail but pretty soon went off of it, not really minding if she got a little lost, it's not like she had anywhere she needed to be.

A few more steps into the thick undergrowth of bushes and trees and Hope could hear something faint like a whisper or a muffled word. She made her way towards it until the sound had turned into an unmistakable giggle and she recognized who it was immediately.

Josie had been one of her best friends for almost as long as she'd been dating Penelope. In fact she had even told Hope that at one point she'd had a small crush on both of them. Her feelings though were nothing more than schoolgirl fantasies because the brunette had been completely supportive of their relationship from the beginning. She figured out pretty early on that they were better as friends and that Hope and Penelope were actually the ones who were meant to be together. The tribrid had been grateful that no drama had arisen from the situation and that they'd all managed to stay very close at the end of it. She loved Josie and she knew that Penelope did too, it was important to them all that they remain in each other's lives.

In a clearing maybe sixty feet away she could see two people interlocked in what looked like a pretty passionate make-out session. Josie had Penelope pressed up against the bark of a tree, her hand woven into messy dark hair. They moved with each other and the sounds of their lips and tongues meeting were not actually that loud and yet still like a siren in Hope's head.

She hadn't known exactly what she was going to find when she went looking for Penelope but this was definitely not it. She felt stuck, like her feet were anchored in their place and no matter how badly she wanted to look away she couldn't.

Tears streamed down her face and her chest felt like it would explode. Though she knew they weren't technically cheating, she still felt betrayed. Mainly by whatever fate had decided that she hadn't suffered enough in her lifetime. Why it seemed like someone had it out for her she didn't know, but anytime something good came along she would enjoy it for a minute before it would all get ripped away. More and more often Hope found herself hurt, crying and utterly alone. It made her feel like her statement that she was a “cosmic mistake” was the truth.

Penelope was by far the best thing that had ever happened to her and she had always wondered how she could've gotten so lucky. It had been hard for her to let herself love and be loved because she was always scared that she might lose her. Eventually though she'd grown used to having the witch in her life, grown used to loving her and had decided that maybe, finally, she was being allowed to have this one amazing thing after all the crap she'd endured. It looked like she'd been wrong though.

  
  


And as she watched her best friend kiss the girl she loved Hope couldn't help but feel like maybe if Malivore decided to swallow her up again then it wouldn't be so bad. At least when she was trapped in the black oblivion she'd been able to imagine what life would be like on the outside. She'd been able to imagine coming back to her friends and family, back to Penelope and everything being just as it was before. Reality was a harsh bitch though.

Josie and Penelope pulled apart coming up for air finally and when the brunette touched her forehead against the green-eyed girl's, breathing deeply and smiling, Hope found herself able to move again. Not wanting to see any more than she already had she turned and sprinted back through the trees where she came, hoping they hadn't noticed her and forcefully wiping her eyes as the tears fell.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so what did you think? when this scene (or the one that was similar to this one) aired my heart broke for hope. Poor girl, having to see the person you love kiss your best friend. I'm sorry I put her through it again.  
we'll get to see penelope's pov next chapter and how all of this is going to start to affect her even more than it already has, especially now that hope is back!
> 
> don't forget to kudos/comment  
twitter: @posiewaves


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi i'm back did you miss me ;)  
I don't have much to say this time other than thank you for continuing to read this mess <3 I appreciate it  
so here's chapter 4

Penelope pulled away from Josie's face when the crunching of leaves underfoot a short distance away caught her attention. Her eyes darted along the tree line trying to get a look at whatever or whoever was out there but the darkness surrounding them provided a lot of coverage. She couldn't see anything.

“Did you hear that?”

“Hear what?”

Josie wore a sweet lazy smile, she'd finally gotten to kiss the other witch, a fantasy of hers for a while now and it had been better than she could've imagined. Her heart was still beating quite quickly from a mixture of happiness and anxiety. She'd been a little worried about Penelope's reaction to her initiating the kiss but it had seemed to Josie like she enjoyed it. The ravenette had kissed her back so that was a good sign right?

She circled her arms around Penelope's neck hoping that they might continue from where they had just left off.

But Penelope wasn't paying attention to the girl in front of her right now, still locked on the area she swore she'd heard the noise come from.

When Josie tugged her closer and pressed their lips back together Penelope let her do it, temporarily distracted from her search. She wasn't sure why but something about kissing the brunette felt wrong to her, like most of the things they did together.

Penelope had hoped that by now being with Josie would be easy, that she just had to get used to dating her. She'd heard people say that 'instant attraction' doesn't always happen. Sometimes you have to get to know the other person before you can be sure that you like them. The only problem though is that Penelope already knows Josie and quite well. They've been friends for as long as Penelope has been at Salvatore and yet that pull, that desire, that she thinks she should be feeling just isn't there.

And for some inexplicable reason when Josie's lips are pressed against her own Penelope finds herself filled with an unrelenting urge to push her away and run. Of course she doesn't but the impulse is still there.

Flashes of auburn hair and blue eyes cross her mind and gently she moves back from the siphoner giving her a small smile and taking her hand in her own.

“Are you okay?”

Josie gave her a confused look, scanning Penelope's features for any sign of what might be wrong.

“Yea I just, I don't know I feel like we're being watched.”

That was partially true, she did feel like there was someone out there who had seen them kiss, she was also pretty sure they were gone now though. She couldn't tell Josie that the real reason she wanted to stop was because she simply didn't want to make-out with her anymore. She felt like a terrible person for it and she really didn't want to hurt anyone so keeping it to herself seemed like the only option.

Josie chuckled lightly at her words. Her hand coming up to brush a few strands of Penelope's hair behind her ear.

“I think you might still be a little tired Pen.”

She was referring to the odd trance like state that the green-eyed witch had found herself in the other day during their study date. Penelope still had yet to have another 'vision' and she was hoping it would stay that way. The one had been exhausting not to mention extremely unsettling.

“Yea maybe,”

She sighed then squeezed Josie's hand,

“Do you mind if we go back to the party now?”

The brunette's eyes widened a little, she was a bit perplexed by Penelope's request. Most people would want to stay and see how far they could push their luck. Stopping was normally the last thing on a hormonal teenager's mind but then again Penelope was not like most teens, that's part of why Josie liked her.

Even if she was disappointed about cutting their alone time short Josie was not going to be the type of girl who coerced another person into being physically affectionate with her if they were not into it. It was obvious to her that something was off with Penelope so if she wanted to go back then they would go back. Maybe she would get lucky and the witch would tell her what was on her mind though Josie doubted it. Penelope was a pretty private person, she would just have to respect that and hope that one day she would trust her enough to open up.

“Um yea okay.”

~~~~~~

When they got back to the party it was clear that everyone had been enjoying the alcohol some of the students had managed to illegally obtain. They were all drunk.

Lizzie was talking to a cute werewolf but as soon as she caught sight of her sister she dismissed the boy who watched sullenly as she left him staring after her.

“Princess.”

Penelope smirked when Lizzie scowled at the nickname.

“Satan.”

This is how things had always been between them. They were like the ultimate frenemies, constantly trying to one up each other. It was like an unspoken competition to see who could piss off the other more. Even though neither would say it out loud it was obvious that the amount of dedication they put into their feud meant that they cared. Now that Penelope and Josie were kind of together they'd been seeing even more of each other and most of their conversations centered around the blonde's distaste for their relationship.

“Did you enjoy defiling my sweet sister?”

Lizzie flipped some of her hair away from her shoulder enjoying the slight widening of Penelope's eyes at her words. But Penelope was used to their little back and forth bickering and her surprise wore off fairly quickly, her expression nothing but the epitome of cool.

“Why, jealous that I didn't choose you?”

Lizzie balked, her skin tone turning a shade lighter and Penelope snickered when she gagged.

“Stop I might actually be sick.”

Josie swatted at Lizzie's arm and rolled her eyes at the way the two girls interacted with each other. She was used to it now and she'd be lying if she said that it didn't make her feel a little fuzzy inside when she watched them talk.

She turned to Penelope who was still smirking at her twin and placed her hand on the small of her back.

“Do you want anything to drink? I'll go grab it.”

The smirk fell away. The brunette was so gentle and soft as she spoke with a smile. It was probably a response to how Penelope had reacted earlier. She was being kind but all Penelope could focus on was how close Josie was to her now, the fact that they had kissed earlier and how she wanted nothing more than for the night to be over.

“Actually you were right before JoJo, I am tired. I think I'll just head back to my room.”

Josie's hand fell away from her then and Penelope could see the subtle disappointment in her eyes.

“Are you sure? Do you want me to come with you?”

“No no, it's okay. Stay have fun I'll see you tomorrow.”

Penelope placed a quick kiss on Josie's cheek and waved to Lizzie who just glared back. The ravenette could not get home fast enough.

Josie watched as her date disappeared into the treeline, walking in the direction of the school. She was sad that Penelope had left so early, it was unlike her. She was used to the green-eyed witch who always acted like the life of the party, something about this Penelope seemed off. If Josie was really paying attention she would have noticed that the girl had been like this for weeks now.

“Weird. She's acting weird. That was weird right?”

“I don't know Jo, it's Penelope she's always been weird.”

Josie rolled her eyes at her sister's words, the blonde was more than a little tipsy and probably wouldn't provide the greatest support system tonight. That was okay, what she needed right now was to take her mind off of the girl she likes.

Lizzie spotted MG making his way over to them with a few drinks in his hands and sighed.

“Come keep me company please, if MG starts flirting with me again I don't think I'll have the strength to fend him off alone.”

She reached her hand out to Josie who chuckled. Poor guy, she knew he really liked her twin, it sucked that it seemed like Lizzie was never going to give him a chance. But then again who knows maybe one day she would, that's probably what he was hoping for anyway.

Josie took her sister's hand and started leading her towards some of their friends and away from the advancing vampire, her mind shifting from Penelope for the time being.

~~~~~~

Penelope leaned against her door after she closed it, she felt relieved to finally be home. Normally when there were parties she got excited and genuinely enjoyed herself, letting go and and releasing any stress that might have been building. But tonight she was just exhausted and most of that had to do with spending the evening with Josie, not that it was the brunette's fault. She just couldn't wait to dive beneath the soft sheets on her bed and stay there until well past noon tomorrow.

First though she needed to change. As cute as her short skirt and tight blouse ensemble was it definitely would not be comfortable to sleep in.

Walking over to her dresser, Penelope paused for a moment to smile at her garden of herbs that she'd been growing for the last several months. The rosemary and jade really seemed to be taking well to their new pots and she hoped that soon she would be able to perform a few spells without having to use any of the school's resources. She didn't want to have to depend on anyone but herself, it was better that way.

She opened her top drawer and started to reach for a pair of cotton shorts when a white sleeve caught her eye. Buried underneath a few comfy sweaters was an old oversized t-shirt that seemed distinctly familiar but Penelope couldn't remember where she'd gotten it from. She pulled it out and as she held it in her hands the fabric felt worn but soft and what was once just a plain white top was now covered in spots of paint.

She wanted to question it more but something inside of her whined to put it on and without hesitating she stripped then slipped the clothing over her head. Immediately she was enveloped by a smell, the same one that had overcome her that day under the tree but that she hadn't been able to place. Now it was stronger and she could pick out the wet leaves, vanilla, and a hint of paint.

This time when she's pulled into a 'vision' it's instantaneous. The room doesn't spin and she isn't nauseous. Just one second she's in her dorm and the next she's, well, she doesn't know where but it's not her room.

_She recognizes that she's still in the school though, in a dorm slightly larger than her own. It's warm and filled with neutral earth tones. She's sitting in a windowsill surrounded by throw-pillows as the rain outside patters lightly against the glass. She turns to look at it and smiles thinking about the possibility of going for a walk through the forest after it stops. The leaves are always so pretty when they're covered in water._

_“Pen sit still!”_

_A soft voice grabs her attention and she's looking ahead again but now she notices the person sitting on a stool a few feet away behind an easel clearly hard at work. Even though they sound annoyed something tells Penelope that they aren't, not really._

_So she laughs._

_“I have been sitting still for ages but now I'm tired, you're taking too long.”_

_The witch crosses her arms over her chest pouting at the person she doesn't know but feels completely comfortable with. They are obviously a girl, wearing an oversized white t-shirt with paint spots and nothing else. She can see the pale creamy skin of the girl's legs and notes that she's a bit shorter than herself which is why Penelope can't see her face hidden behind the tall easel._

_Her pout turns into a smile when she hears the figure sigh._

_“Yea well it would go a lot faster if you stopped moving.”_

_Penelope feels like she should be flattered that this person is obviously trying to paint her. The thought that someone could find her beautiful enough to want to capture in their art is kind of amazing. But something about this situation feels repetitive like the witch often finds herself on the other side of the canvas. Not that she's complaining, she's just used to it. And for some reason she really enjoys aggravating the mystery girl so instead of getting back into her earlier pose she decides to stick her tongue out._

_The petite artist tosses her head back in exasperation and places a hand on her hip._

_“You're incorrigible.”_

_Penelope laughs again her raven hair bouncing around her shoulders and she leans closer to the other girl._

_“Ooh that's a pretty big word babe I'm impressed.”_

_“I hate you.”_

_It comes out softly and without any hint of malice and Penelope knows that it's a lie. Her green eyes light up in triumph and she smirks,_

_“No you don't.”_

_Her companion places her brush down in defeat and sighs again, giving up on trying to paint her muse, at least for a little while._

_“No I don't”_

_She stands making a move to step away from her unfinished canvas and towards the childish witch._

Just when Penelope thinks she might get to see who the girl in her 'vision' is there's a flash and her eyes are snapping open.

She's back in her room confused and feeling a little drained. Shaking her head to clear some of the fogginess left behind Penelope flips off her light switch and crawls into her bed, pulling the comforter up under her chin. She's even more tired now than she was before and still completely lost.

Nothing makes sense to her anymore and try as she might to understand whatever these 'visions' are trying to tell her she just can't. She'd actually heard the girl speak this time, had gotten a sense of her personality and their relationship and yet Penelope was still no closer to piecing any of this information together.

Someone out there had to have the answers to what was going on with her, someone had to know who that girl was or if she was even real. She seemed real, the 'visions' seemed real but how could that be possible? She was going to figure it out, she had to, but all of that could wait until morning. Right now all she wants is to sleep and forget about her problems for a little while.

Yawning her eyes begin to flutter closed and the comforting smell of the oversized shirt she's still wearing helps her to drift off. Her dreams are still fragmented and lack a cohesive picture but she's able to make out the blue eyes and auburn hair that have ingrained themselves into her subconsciousness as they dance in taunting circles around her unsettled mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and we got another henelope vision, slowly we are moving this plot forward. Let me know what you thought :)
> 
> don't forget to kudos/comment  
twitter: @posiewaves


	5. Chapter 5

“_So my mother called.”_

_Penelope had her head lying in Hope's lap while they sat in the younger girl's dorm watching a movie on her laptop, both dressed comfortably in just t-shirts and underwear. Her voice was quiet as she spoke, her mother was always a bit of a sore spot for the witch._

“_She told me that she and my father will be out of the country for Thanksgiving break and that it would be better if I stayed here instead of going home. It doesn't matter I guess, I didn't really want to see them anyway.”_

_Hope listened carefully feeling nothing but frustration towards her girlfriend's mother. They'd never had the best relationship and Hope could count on one hand the number of times either of Penelope's parents had bothered to check in with their daughter in the last year. Penelope acted like she didn't care and that it didn't bother her but Hope knew better. She knew that it didn't matter how many times they neglected her and threw her to the side, the ravenette would still always crave their love and attention. And every time she failed to get it she took it personally as if it was her fault that her parents were jerks and undeserving of her as their child._

“_You should come to New Orleans with me.”_

“_Hope, thank you, that's really sweet of you to offer but I couldn't impose like that.”_

_Penelope wasn't looking at her so she couldn't see when Hope rolled her eyes at her words._

“_Oh please Pen, you know how much all of my aunts adore you, they would love if you came.”_

_Hope had finally told her family that she was dating someone about five months into their relationship and to say that they were a little surprised would be an understatement. They knew their niece quite well, knew how guarded she normally was, so when they learned about Penelope they had all practically jumped at the chance to get to meet the girl who had managed to break down Hope Mikaelson's walls. Well, the witch had the entire family wrapped around her finger within days. _

_Her love of fashion had been a great bonding point with Rebekah and now every time Hope face-timed her aunt Penelope would end up stealing her phone away and she and the original would talk like they'd been friends for years. Keelin loved her as soon as she saw how good Penelope was with her son. Who would've thought the HWIC would have a soft spot for kids and actually be something of a baby whisperer. Freya had been harder to win over, she was extremely protective about her family, Hope especially, but when she'd seen how in love her niece was she caved. She had actually started helping the young witch learn to control and grow her powers. Marcel, Kol and Davina were just happy that Hope was happy and so her entire family approved of her relationship. Suffice to say that now when they visit or call they expect to also spend time with Penelope and Hope couldn't be more grateful for it. It's what her girlfriend deserves, a family that actually shows they care about her._

_Penelope shook her head slightly and began to fiddle with the corner of her blanket._

“_I don't know.”_

_It's not that she didn't want to say yes, she really did but the fear of potentially burdening anyone was hard to shake off. Her parents had done a great job of making her feel as though her presence was never really wanted._

“_Please babe? For me?”_

_That got a small smile from the green-eyed girl before she turned her head to bury her face in Hope's lap._

“_Okay.”_

_Her reply was muffled but Hope heard it and grinned, she ran her fingers through Penelope's hair, coaxing her to turn back around then let her hands rest under her girlfriend's shirt._

_They were silent for a few minutes, both girls content now that Penelope had a place to go for the holiday (maybe Hope could convince her to go home with her for Christmas too). They continued to watch the movie, munching lightly on the half-eaten bowl of caramel popcorn beside them. _

_The room was warm and bright, contrasting with the cold frost that had settled outside and suddenly Penelope felt braver than she had in a while. Probably because of how safe and cared for Hope made her feel._

“_I think I might be slightly kind of in love with you a tiny bit.”_

_Hope tilted her head down to look at the girl in her lap but Penelope wasn't meeting her gaze. Her tan cheeks flushed bright red and Hope knew she was feeling nervous. Her fingers that had been drawing shapes onto the exposed skin below Penelope's shirt didn't stop and she lightly scratched her nails against her stomach smiling when Penelope leaned into her hand even further._

“_You're maybe slightly kind of in love with me a tiny bit?”_

_Her grin spread wider when Penelope gave a small nod, her green eyes still locked on the computer screen and not once looking in Hope's direction. Well, that just wouldn't do. She hated when the witch avoided making eye contact with her, especially when she was embarrassed and had no reason to be. She needed Penelope to trust her, to see her reaction so that she would know it was okay to be vulnerable. They both struggle to let others in and to be honest with their emotions, neither one wanted to be hurt. But they were getting better, slowly, and sharing their feelings with each other was becoming easier. Hope wasn't going to let Penelope backtrack now. _

_Not so gently she pinched Penelope's waist until she gasped and finally turned to her with accusatory eyes._

“_OW.” _

_She glared but her anger subsided almost immediately when Hope began to soothingly massage the spot she'd just hurt. _

“_I'm sorry babe but you know what, I think I might be slightly kind of in love with you, a lot.”_

_Penelope's eyes widened and her blush disappeared, replaced instead with a smile. She raised her hand to cup the back of Hope's neck bringing her down just a few inches above her face._

“_That was probably the cringiest and sappiest thing we've ever said.”_

_Hope allowed herself to hover just over Penelope's lips, feeling her breath on her cheeks and smelling the caramel from their sweet snack._

“_Yea maybe but I meant every word.”_

“_Me too.”_

_They stared at each other for a moment before Hope pulled back laughing._

“_Oh so you really only love me a tiny bit.”_

_Penelope rolled her eyes and sat up across from her snickering girlfriend. _

“_Shut up you know that's not what I meant. I love you more than probably anything else in our angsty teenage lives.”_

_Hope smirked and tapped her chin thoughtfully._

“_Hmm I'm not convinced.”_

_A glimmer of something mischievous flashed across her face and Penelope knew she was being goaded into reacting but she didn't mind._

“_Well then let me convince you.”_

_Within a second she had pushed Hope onto her back and straddled her hips, grinning down at her, obviously proud of being on top. _ _Hope's hair splayed out on the pillow behind her and she stared up in surprise before settling her hands on Penelope's bare thighs. _ _Penelope leaned down grazing her lips against Hope's teasingly. The tribrid tried to pull her mouth against her own, getting frustrated by the lack of contact and Penelope shook her head at her girlfriend's impatience before finally allowing their lips to touch._

“_I. Love. You.”_

_Each word was punctuated by a kiss and when she finished her sentence Penelope sat back chuckling at the flush of Hope's cheeks and the obvious desire in her eyes. _

_Hope squeezed the witch's thighs, letting the warmth she always felt from kissing Penelope wash over her. _

“_I know you do, I just wanted you to kiss me.”_

“_You're an idiot, if you want me to kiss you all you have to do is ask.”_

_A beat passed and neither girl moved, both waiting for the other to do something. Hope stared at Penelope's mouth and watched as her tongue slipped out to wet her lips. When they were lying together in her bed everything her girlfriend did was intoxicating and she had to bite the inside of her cheek to stop from groaning at the sight._

“_Kiss me?”_

_Her voice was breathless even though she hadn't done anything and the rise and fall of her chest was noticeable to the girl sitting on top of her._

_Penelope could feel the hands on her thighs tighten their hold and chanced another look into normally grey eyes that had turned a dark stormy blue. She knew that the tribrid's restraint wouldn't last for much longer, not that she wanted it to. All she wanted right now was the girl under her. It didn't matter if her parents never cared about her, or if she wasn't wanted in her childhood house, as long as Hope kept saying that she loved her while looking at her like that then Penelope was already home._

“_Always.”_

~~~~~~

Hope had run all the way through the forest and to the bus stop at the edge of town. Tears still fell freely down her cheeks and she hadn't even bothered trying to stop them. She couldn't believe what she'd seen, Penelope, her Penelope with Josie? She felt like she couldn't breathe, her chest was tight, her mind was racing and she realized quickly that she was having a panic attack.

Without thinking she reached into her pocket and pulled out the crystal that she'd stolen earlier that night. She closed her eyes trying to focus on getting her lungs to work properly again and started counting backward slowly from ten.

“Hope?”

That voice, that stupid annoyingly perfect voice that she was desperate to hear broke through her methodical counting and it killed Hope how easily just the sound of Penelope's voice instantly calmed her down.

Carefully she opened her eyes and turned to look at the girl who was now sitting next to her, concern etched into her face. Her green eyes shined under the light of the moon and Hope hadn't realized how much she had missed looking into them until she finally was for the first time in months.

“What's wrong? Why are you crying?”

Her words were soft and her expression so gentle Hope would've given anything to be able to reach out and touch her, hold her. But she knew she couldn't. This Penelope wasn't real, simply a reconstruction of the girl in her memories. But real or not being this close to her after so much time apart was incredible even after what she had just witnessed in the forest.

Her desperation and the situation as a whole made her feel a little insane. She was sitting in the dark with the image of her girlfriend while she cried over the real one who didn't even remember she existed because she had jumped into a magical pile of mud and now she was making-out with her best friend. It was absurd truly and Hope couldn't help but let out a heartbroken laugh.

“You wouldn't believe me if I told you.”

Penelope, or Penelope's image, smiled at her sadly then nodded.

“It's because I was kissing Josie right? Are you mad at me?”

Hope stared at her for a moment then sighed.

“No I'm not mad at you, I can't be. It's not your fault, you don't remember and neither does she. I guess I never should have expected you to wait for me.”

She had been holding on to a pipe dream that when she came back home everything would be just as she left it and that Penelope would still be hers. But that's the thing about hope, no matter how badly you want it to, it doesn't always exist.

“You're still hurt though, that doesn't go away even if I can't be blamed. I would have waited you know, if I remembered, because I love you and that hasn't changed.”

Maybe she meant what she said, maybe she didn't. She was just a holographic manifestation of Hope's subconsciousness after all and her words were based off of what the Mikaelson wanted to hear as well as what she believed Penelope would actually say. Even so, hearing those three words in Penelope's voice was enough to make her tears stop flowing almost completely.

She took a shuddery breath. A small light down the road flickered and drew her attention. It was the bus she was waiting for.

“So you're seriously going to leave?”

Annoyance rang out clearly in Penelope's words,

“Because that's fair to all of us right? Even though you know that I would never want you to go without at least saying goodbye to me first.”

Hope picked at the sleeve of her jacket, she'd actually managed to snag it on a branch while she was running and hadn't noticed. She shrugged.

“It's not like I really have a reason to stay anymore. And besides I did say goodbye once, it was the hardest thing I ever had to do but at least you knew who I was then. What would be the point of doing it now?”

Penelope had become a huge part of who she was and losing that, losing her, hurt more than she could have ever imagined. But if Hope was being honest, what really scared her about staying in Mystic Falls was the possibility that one day Penelope would remember who she is but by then it would be too late and she would still choose to be with Josie. She wasn't sure if she could survive that scenario.

“I would want to know Hope, even if I couldn't understand. I would still want you to tell me because I love you and you love me and leaving now without saying anything is a ridiculously selfish thing to do.”

When Hope's eyes met Penelope's she could see how confused and broken the witch was. That's probably how the real Penelope would look at her too, confused and broken at the thought of Hope betraying her by leaving. But then the real Penelope didn't know she existed so maybe she wouldn't share the same feelings.

“I'm sorry Pen, it just hurts so bad.”

Hope shook her head,

“I wish that it didn't, I wish that you still knew me, I wish that I had said more to you that night before I jumped. I wish that you were really here right now but you're not. This is just the way things are and I can't change them even though I wish I could. So all I want now is for you to be happy and if Josie makes you happy then I have to accept that. I won't stay just to upset you with the truth.”

Penelope stared at her incredulously,

“But you'll let me live a lie instead? I know that you're in pain and I know that you would rather just run away and turn off your emotions, pretend like none of this ever happened, but you're decision isn't just affecting you right now. Think about how badly it would hurt _me_ if I found out that you were just up the road, about to get on a bus without even telling me that you're still alive.”

She was pissed, she had every right to be but Hope was too tired to argue with her subconscious girlfriend anymore.

“Penelope I-”

A loud screech followed by the smashing of glass and bending of metal made Hope shoot up from her spot on the bench. The streetlights around her flickered and she hoped that they wouldn't go out completely.

The bus that had been slowly making its way towards her was definitely no longer in service. It was crushed almost beyond recognition and the giant creature responsible for the mess had just caught sight of her. Its body heaved as it growled at the teen obviously not satisfied with destroying city transportation and ready to potentially crush her as well.

“Welcome home Hope.”

She mumbled under her breath before preparing herself for a fight, the crystal and Penelope momentarily forgotten.

So much for leaving.

~~~~~~

She fought and she won. Another one of Malivore's creatures was destroyed and somehow she'd even managed to make a few friends along the way. Though she hadn't expected to run into the principal of Mystic Falls High or for him to be Alaric, she was grateful for the help that he'd provided her when they'd teamed up to kill the troll.

He had told her earlier that the monster attacks had stopped for a while, it seemed like for the entire time that she had been gone. She would be lying if she said she wasn't feeling a bit guilty that the reason they were starting up again might be because she escaped from that hell dimension.

But that was a concern for another time. Because right now she was standing in Alaric's office trying to leave as the man who had always treated her like a third daughter tried to pry the answers to his questions from her unwilling mouth. She had told him that her name was Hope Marshall, made up a story about a mother and father named Kathleen and Tom and that she was a traveling demon hunter. He hadn't really believed her even then but they were so busy trying to kill the monster that there hadn't been time for questions. Now that it was all over he wanted to know the truth.

“Fighting with you was almost instinctual, like muscle memory. I trusted you completely even though we just met which leads me to believe that we've fought together before.”

Her brain raced trying to think of a lie or excuse that would be valid enough to explain everything but she kept coming up empty.

“No, what? That's crazy and totally impossible.”

“Yea except I live in a world where a creature named Malivore can erase people from your memory. Is that what happened?”

They stared at each other in silence, Hope's lips twitching but unable to say a word. She was caught and they both knew it.

“I'll take that as a yes. So I'll ask you again Hope, who are you really?”

Standing there with his eyes piercing into her own Hope felt completely alone. This was the man who had become the closest thing she had to a father after her own had died and the effort it was taking for her to continue lying to him was exhausting. She was scared and hurting, her heart was broken and everyone she loved had forgotten that she existed. Everything came flooding back to her all at once, the goodbye phone calls, living in the dark for months, complete isolation, escaping only to watch the love of her life kiss someone else. It was too much, all of it too painful and something in her seemed to finally break.

“My name isn't Hope Marshall.”

Tears stream down her face like rivers running across her cheeks and she thinks she's cried more in the last 24 hours than she has in a very long time.

“It's Hope Mikaelson. I'm Klaus and Hayley's daughter.”

And just like that, her secret was out and whatever happened next wouldn't be entirely within her control anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> next chapter will be the first time penelope and hope see each other since malivore, I wonder how that will go.
> 
> don't forget to comment/kudos :)  
twitter: @posiewaves


	6. Chapter 6

It was official, Josie was actually her girlfriend now and everyone knew it including Lizzie who didn't entirely understand why her sister would want to date “the dark lord herself” but tried to be at least somewhat supportive. It wasn't awful and the brunette seemed happy, that's all Penelope really cared about, even if she wasn't entirely sure about her own feelings.

It was the weekend so they had free reign to leave campus and do whatever they would like. Josie had invited her out to dinner and they'd chosen to go to the Mystic Grill.

Penelope sat in a booth across from her new girlfriend and watched as she looked over the menu. They hadn't spoken much, it was hard to find new topics to talk about when you basically live together and already know almost everything. So a slightly awkward silence had fallen over them but Penelope didn't really mind seeing as how her brain was almost always preoccupied with thoughts about the 'visions' she'd been experiencing lately.

The more she had the more real they felt and the more confused she became. She had so many questions but no one to give her the answers and it was frustrating. She'd started going to the library a few nights a week, researching anything that could shed some light on what was happening to her but she'd been coming up empty-handed. It almost seemed like a lost cause, whatever she was experiencing wasn't something that had been written about in any book which meant finding on explanation would be next to impossible.

“Pen, I'm going to run to the bathroom. Could you just order for me? I trust you.”

Josie smiled softly at her and Penelope returned the expression with a nod.

“Yea no problem.”

She watched Josie slip out of the booth and make her way towards the washroom then sighed. Everything about her was so easy, she did whatever she could to make Penelope feel comfortable, feel wanted and yet Penelope still had her reservations about their relationship. Did that make her a bad person? She wasn't sure but she did know that she probably didn't deserve the siphoner regardless of how much Josie may like her.

When the waitress comes over Penelope settles on something simple that she hopes Josie will like, burgers and fries. She feels confident in her choice like maybe for once she could get a handle on dating the beautiful brunette.

It's not until after the food arrives that she learns Josie is actually a vegetarian and she definitely should have known that already. The younger girl just laughs it off with a wave of her hand but Penelope can't help wondering if maybe it's a little forced.

~~~~~~

“One strawberry made with fresh berries and one peanut butter blast with whipped creme on the bottom.”

Penelope grabbed the drinks from the counter thanking the older man who had just prepared them before walking back outside to where Josie stood on the sidewalk.

She handed the brunette her pink milkshake and Josie took it with a smile then slipped her free hand into Penelope's so they could continue their walk. After the slightly awkward experience that had been dinner, the girls had reached a mutual agreement that frozen deserts and a peaceful stroll through town would be the perfect conclusion to their date. After all there's nothing that can't be fixed with a good milkshake.

It was a sweet idea and Penelope had been completely on board until she'd went to place her order and what had slipped out of her mouth was a flavor of drink that she couldn't ever remember having tried before. _Peanut butter blast with whipped creme on the bottom? _Where had she gotten that from? It was so specific and yet in all her life Penelope had never really cared for peanut butter, she was definitely more of a salted caramel girl.

Still, she didn't want to make Josie suspicious if she ordered it but didn't drink it and she'd be damned if she let a perfectly good shake go to waste.

After she takes her first sip though she starts to reconsider her philosophy when the world around her quickly rearranges and she realizes that her surprisingly good dessert has just triggered yet another 'vision'.

_Penelope is sipping on a salted caramel shake while slowly walking through the park. The drink is cold and she can feel it as it runs down her throat and into her stomach. Her free hand brushes against someone else's with every step she takes and she can't help but marvel at the softness of their skin. Even though the air around her is a bit crisp she feels relatively warm and she may have the body beside her to thank for that. _

“_Mmmm Pen this is so good you have to try it!”_

_Penelope keeps staring straight ahead but smirks at the moan her companion lets out after drinking her shake._

“_Babe no offense but whipped creme on the bottom? Why?”_

_The girl next to her laughs and even though Penelope can't see her face she knows that the grin that is most likely taking residence there has spread all the way up to her eyes._

“_Because I like the way the flavors mix together. Plus when you get it on the top you don't really taste it until you've finished the rest of the shake. This way every sip has whipped creme in it.”_

_Now it's Penelope's turn to laugh and shake her head at the response she's been given. It's silly but somehow still makes sense and the simplistic nature of it almost makes her snort. When their hands brush again she makes sure to entangle their fingers and give a gentle squeeze._

“_You are such a dork.”_

_The girl squeezes back then lifts their hands up to her face. Penelope still doesn't look, or rather she can't look, it's like her neck won't allow her to turn her head enough to see the person beside her but she can still feel it when cool lips ghost the back of her hand in a barely-there kiss. _

“_Yea but I'm your dork.”_

_Her heart flutters at the mixture of contact and words and she finds herself yearning for more, wanting to wrap the unknown girl in her embrace and kiss her with enough force to sear the moment into her memory for good. The desire is overwhelming and unrelenting, it's almost enough to make Penelope want to cry with frustration at not being able to do anything to sate it. If she could just get her head to turn enough then maybe..._

There's a phone ringing somewhere close to her but Penelope knows it's not her own. Josie's hand slips from hers as she fumbles around in her bag for a moment before finding the small device that is making so much noise. She shoots Penelope an apologetic look before accepting the call and bringing her phone up to her ear.

“Lizzie what is it? I'm out with Penelope right now so I hope it's important.”

Penelope can hear the subtle frustration in her girlfriend's voice towards her sister for interrupting them and she feels like she should be sharing in that frustration but she isn't. Instead her mind is focusing on the gentle pressure that she's certain she can still feel on the back of her hand, left behind by the lips of the mystery girl.

It seems like it's getting easier for her body to slip in and out of these 'visions' now. She isn't even really fazed by it anymore and it doesn't seem like Josie noticed either which is a huge win for her because Penelope isn't sure how she would be able to explain that she was basically just daydreaming about being on a date with another girl who she still hasn't seen the face of. Yea, definitely not something you want to share with the person you've just barely made things official with.

The sun had begun to set sometime while Penelope had been otherwise preoccupied and she took note of the soft blends of pinks and oranges that mixed together to make up the early evening sky. Somewhere in the very back of her mind, a voice whispered that this scene would make a beautiful backdrop for a painting.

“So Lizzie needs my help. Apparently there's some drama between her, MG and the new kid Sebastian and she needs me to mediate things before the situation gets out of control. You know how it is with boys, toxic masculinity and all.”

Josie let out a disappointed sigh knowing that by agreeing to go to her sister's aid she'd inadvertently also ended hers and Penelope's date a bit earlier than planned.

But Penelope wasn't upset, she smiled gently then took Josie's hand back into her own again. She rubbed her thumb across the other girl's knuckles in a comforting motion.

“It's ok JoJo don't worry about it. We can always make plans for another time, if your sister needs you, and it sounds like she does, then you should be with her.”

The brunette grinned, grateful at the other witch for being so understanding. She thought Lizzie interrupting them might cause a small argument but it seemed like Penelope was completely fine with it, reminding her again why she liked the green-eyed girl so much.

“Alright I'll see you later then. Thank you for being so sweet about this.”

Before she leaves Josie pulls Penelope in for a chaste kiss goodbye and the raven-haired girl can taste the strawberry flavor from her milkshake lingering on her lips. With a small wave, she watches as Josie runs off back in the direction of the school and Penelope decides then that she actually likes peanut butter better.

~~~~~~

Penelope decides to stay in town for a while after Josie leaves. She's in no rush to get back and it's nice being outside and away from the constant bustle of Salvatore school. As much as she enjoys being there sometimes a girl needs her space and finding any alone time when you essentially live with a hundred other kids is difficult to say the least.

She walked through the center of town then stopped to sit on one of the park benches, content to watch the rest of the sunset and relax before starting her trek back.

All things considered she didn't think today had been completely awful. Her 'vision' and ignorance of Josie's dietary restrictions aside, things could have gone far worse. And maybe celebrating the little victories like not totally hating the time spent with her girlfriend wasn't really what dating was supposed to be about, but in this situation Penelope was going to pretend like it was.

She pulled out her phone and earbuds then pressed play on a random indie playlist that she'd made a few days ago. As the music filtered through her head she allowed the soft rhythm to overwhelm and calm her, pushing all relevant thoughts out of her mind.

Her eyes passed over the scenes in front of her, taking in the cars, shops and people still going about their business but who would soon all be retiring for the night. Small towns never stay loud for long and it was common for the streets to be dead silent by 9PM, a far cry from the overpopulated blocks of Manhattan where she had been born. New York definitely lived up to its name as the city that never sleeps and it was cool to get to experience living in a small town. It gave her a sense of community even though she rarely took part in it what with being one of the supernaturals.

Penelope had started to zone out a bit when a sudden flash of red, or rather auburn caught her eye. A girl around her age with pale skin and startlingly blue eyes was crossing the street. Dressed in skin-tight pants, combat boots and a maroon jean jacket she was petite but radiated badass energy and to Penelope she looked like an absolute goddess. The longer she found herself staring the more painfully familiar the girl became but no matter how hard she tried the witch just couldn't seem to place her.

She got closer and was actually about to pass by her when suddenly Penelope found herself standing. Annoyed by not being able to figure out how she knew the perfect stranger she was yelling for the girl's attention before she could stop herself.

When she turned and saw her the girl's eyes widened subtly before she managed to quickly school her features but Penelope didn't notice anyway. She was too busy staring in awe at the person in front of her and her feet started shuffling forward of their own accord until they were standing less than a few meters apart.

“Hi.”

Her voice was soft and a bit quiet and if Penelope were really paying attention she might have been able to pick up on the hint of hopefulness in it when she addressed her. But she didn't and instead was too busy marveling at how just that one word sent a shiver down her spine and almost seemed to unlock a door in her mind that she hadn't even realized was closed.

There was something so comfortable about the way they both stood looking at each other, something old and peaceful. This girl, Penelope didn't know how or in what way but she meant something to her. It was like someone was whispering in the back of her mind words that she couldn't quite hear or a picture that she couldn't quite make out. It frustrated her to no end.

“Do I know you?”

The words tumbled out of her mouth as she continued to stare and she watched as blue eyes blinked for a moment. The girl's shoulders seemed to sag ever so slightly as if she were carrying the world's heaviest weight but didn't want Penelope to know it. She seemed to search for something in Penelope's face, in her eyes, for a while but when she didn't find whatever it was she was looking for she took a small breath and shook her head.

“I don't think so.”

And there was something about her tone, about the way those words inflicted a sense of sorrow in Penelope's mind. She could almost feel as a wave of sadness passed from the girl over to her and immediately the witch had to restrain her desire to cross the rest of the distance between them and wrap her in her arms.

“You look so familiar to me for some reason.”

She said it mostly to herself but the girl heard and offered her a small smile that didn't quite reach her eyes and Penelope thought that she would very much like to see what she looked like when it does.

She brushed some of her hair behind her ear and her hand shook a bit as she did but she played it off well and Penelope just assumed that she was a little cold.

“Maybe I just have one of those generic faces.”

“No, you definitely don't.”

This time when the girl smiled it actually did spread all the way across her face and if it weren't for the red hot embarrassment that flooded Penelope the moment those words left her mouth she would have taken a lot of pride in knowing that she'd been able to induce that reaction.

Her face flushed bright red and even though she couldn't see it, she could feel it. That was definitely an inside thought but it was too late to take it back, not that she wanted to anyway and she just hoped that the girl wasn't too weirded out by her rather personal compliment.

Penelope coughed lightly then ran her hand through her hair, dropping eye contact for a moment before giving a sheepish grin.

“I'm Penelope by the way.”

The girl was still smiling at her, she didn't look uncomfortable and Penelope took that as a good sign.

“Hope.”

_Hope s_he let the word roll around in her mind, sounding out each letter and repeating it to herself before deciding that it might be one of the prettiest names she's heard in a while and very fitting for her new acquaintance.

They fell back into a silent stare-off again as Penelope took in every detail of Hope like a computer scanning and filing away information for later. Even though the auburn-haired teen had said that they didn't know each other Penelope didn't feel completely certain about that and she couldn't help but wonder if maybe she was being lied to.

Any negative feelings she may have had though seemed to almost completely disappear when Hope's head tilted to the side a bit and the final rays of fading sunlight caught in her eyes making them sparkle in a way that was both beautiful and a little inhuman.

Her trance came to an end when Hope lightly cleared her throat and tore her eyes away.

“I actually have to get going.”

She said it like she was disappointed about something and Penelope wished she had more time to ask her what was wrong. But considering they had only just met it probably still wouldn't be her place.

“Oh yea, me too.”

It wasn't a lie she really did need to start heading back to the school but she also really didn't want to, not now.

When Hope smiled at her for the final time her expression was almost enough to make Penelope's heart burst. She returned it with a small smile of her own and decided then that she needed to get to know this girl better.

She reached into her pocket to grab her phone but found it empty and remembered that she had accidentally left in on the bench where she was sitting earlier.

“Wait, before you leave could I maybe have...”

She was speaking with her head down and it wasn't until she looked back up again that she realized she was talking to no one. She was alone and Hope had already disappeared out of her life as quickly as she had walked into it, taking all of Penelope's unanswered questions with her.

“Your number.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy New Year! 
> 
> Sorry I know it's been a minute since I last updated but I really hope you enjoyed henelope's "first meeting"! From this point forward there will be a lot more interactions between the two of them and the other characters as we continue the story. The next chapter is the football game :)
> 
> don't forget to kudos/comment!  
twitter: @posiewaves


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> just a quick note before you start this chapter: raf is not stuck in werewolf form, I repeat raf is not a part of this specific storyline cuz he is not stuck in werewolf form :)
> 
> enjoy!

Within a week of her telling Alaric who she really was, Hope had already been enrolled at Mystic Falls High, forgoing the usual paperwork and formalities of course. There were some perks to being the principal of a public school in a magical town, no one really paid much attention when a new student that they hadn't seen before suddenly showed up. Seeing as how they were used to things like monster attacks, plagues and the literal gates to Hell appearing in their backyards, this was nothing.

Before Malivore Hope would never have admitted to actually liking school but now she just appreciated having some stability in her life again, even if she was constantly surrounded by teens more idiotic than the ones at Salvatore. She missed her friends, her family, she missed people knowing who she was but at least she had classes to keep her mind occupied and of course there was Alaric. Her old mentor had rented a small two-bedroom house in town after being fired and she'd been staying with him since she had nowhere else to go. He may not have remembered her but he trusted her and embraced her anyway. She would forever be grateful for that because she didn't think she could've handled being alone for much longer.

What she wasn't grateful for however was being trapped on this cramped bus with all of her new classmates chanting and trying to hype themselves up. It was the day of their annual football match against Salvatore and to say that Hope wasn't looking forward to it would be an understatement. When Alaric had first asked her to sign up for the team she'd thought he was joking and she'd flat-out rejected the idea. It wasn't until he'd told her about the werewolf killing demon lurking in the woods behind her old school that she finally changed her mind. Not because she actually cared about the wolves, they were all kind of jerks and meatheads anyway, but because she couldn't stomach the thought of Penelope potentially going out and getting hurt by a creature that she could've stopped. The likelihood of that happening was minute since the ravenette was a witch but it still wasn't a chance Hope was willing to take, regardless of how much she'd been unintentionally hurt by the girl she loved.

When she'd gone into town the other day the last person she'd expected to run into was her ex. It was stupid and she knew it, Penelope lives here too so seeing her shouldn't have been as shocking as it was but all rational thought process had left Hope's mind the second the witch had started speaking to her.

It was surreal, she'd known that Penelope didn't remember her as soon as she'd seen her kiss Josie but actually experiencing the lack of memory first hand was something else entirely. She'd underestimated how badly it would hurt to look into those bright green eyes again and see absolutely no recognition. It had felt like a punch to the gut when Penelope had asked who she was and any potential hope she'd had of the girl's memory being magically restored was crushed. That's why she'd rushed to leave. The moment Penelope had turned away from her she'd ran faster than she ever had. A few blocks from the park bench where she'd left the witch Hope had finally allowed herself to break down. She'd cried for the rest of that night.

Now she was going to be facing her again and Hope wasn't sure if she was ready. Honestly she would probably never be ready but she still had to do it. The thing she was least looking forward to was having to watch Penelope and Josie interact with each other. Even though Penelope herself didn't actually play football she was like the Stallions unofficial mascot. She never missed a game and would definitely be there cheering her new girlfriend on, just like she'd used to do for Hope.

_They were losing, badly, and this time Alaric hadn't even told them that they needed to, they just genuinely sucked. _

_None of them really cared that much about it but that didn't mean it wasn't still slightly embarrassing to be getting their asses kicked by a bunch of humans. Hope shook her head and sighed as Landon fumbled the ball yet again and they had to reset all over. Halftime was coming up soon though and she was more than ready for a break because she was sure she'd already surpassed her limit for patience. _

_When the whistle finally blew a visible wave of relief passed through all of the supernatural kids as they dragged themselves over to the benches. Sweat soaked, covered in mud and pretty much over the entire game Hope felt her mood lighten immensely as soon as she caught sight of her girlfriend waiting for her on the sidelines with a bottle of water in her hands. _

_She smiled gratefully taking the offered drink from Penelope and gulped it down greedily. When she finished she used the back of her hand to wipe any of the liquid that had spilled from her mouth. Penelope just stood in front of her wearing her usual smirk and normal game day attire, a short blue and yellow skirt with a matching fitted jacket and heeled boots. She looked good, she always did and she knew it._

“_Tired?”_

_Hope rolled her eyes at the obvious question knowing that Penelope had just spent the better part of the afternoon watching their team get destroyed, she was exhausted._

“_I think I have something that'll make you feel better.”_

“_What-” _

_Before Hope could finish her question Penelope had stepped closer to her and wrapped her arms loosely around the smaller girl's hips. She leaned in placing a gentle kiss to her mouth followed by her cheek then paused before pressing her lips against Hope's ear._

“_If you win I promise that trophy isn't the only prize you'll be getting tonight.”_

_If anyone had been looking in their general direction they would've probably been confused by the deep blush that bloomed across Hope's face at her girlfriend's whispered words. Her mind was filling with thoughts of the less than innocent kind faster than she could keep up. She could feel the heat of Penelope's breath on the side of her neck and it sent a jolt through her body that made her wish they were somewhere a little more private._

_When Penelope pulled back her smirk was still perfectly in place and her green eyes shone with knowing._

_Hope blinked and suddenly her mouth felt even drier than it had when she'd first come off the field._

“_Lizzie was right, you are the devil.”_

_Penelope laughed then gave her a little push and Hope realized that their break had ended, it was time for her to go._

“_Good luck.”_

_She started walking backwards slowly unable to take her eyes off of the witch and nearly tripped when Penelope blew her a kiss before turning to go back to her seat with an added sway to her step._

_Needless to say the Stallions ended up making a miraculous comeback during the second half and had won that game._

Hope couldn't stand the thought of Penelope making the same kind of promises to Josie. She just prayed that they hadn't reached that level of affection in their relationship yet or that at the very least they would be discreet about it, for her sake.

~~~~~~

When she stepped off of the bus Hope's eyes immediately began to scan the crowds for raven hair. She found Penelope almost instantly talking with Josie and some of the other Stallions. Josie had her arm wrapped around Penelope's waist in a way that made Hope's wolf growl possessively and it took everything in her not to walk over to them and rip the witch away. If her Penelope, the one who remembered her, could see how jealous Hope was right now she would laugh and make fun of her mercilessly for weeks. It's that thought as well as the knowledge that she has no claim over her ex (because Penelope is a person and not an object to be fought over) that allows Hope to reign in her more primal urges and make her way towards the field.

It wasn't until the refs called for both teams to get into position that Penelope noticed her and green eyes seemed to lock on to her every move. When they were dating Hope would always know when Penelope was watching her, it was like a sixth sense somehow she could just feel it. Her stare was different from the gawking looks that others would usually direct her way, it was softer more intimate, like she was seeing right through the tribrid to her innermost parts that no one else even knew existed.

It sent a shiver down Hope's spine and she refused to meet the witch's gaze. Apparently though she wasn't the only one who noticed that Penelope's attention was divided.

Josie sent a small wave in Penelope's direction but when she didn't get a response the siphoner followed her line of sight straight to Hope. She had no idea why her girlfriend was so interested in the redheaded stranger. Sure the girl was pretty but so what, she's pretty too, and she looked damn good in her uniform. Penelope should be focused on her not a random teen from their rival school.

The whistle blew and the game began. Hope had no real intention of sticking around to play. She planned on feigning an injury fairly early on so that she could leave without raising any suspicions. But of course the football was thrown to her first and she had no choice but to make a play quickly so she could move on. She took about three steps before one of the boys on her team (Todd or Tom or maybe Jake, honestly she had no idea) started waving his arms at her. The ball flew out of her hands and landed perfectly in his but Hope didn't have time to admire her award-worthy throw when out of nowhere her body was being forced to the ground. There was no time to brace herself so her shoulder took the brunt of the fall and she landed with a grunt.

“Sorry.”

The word was mumbled from the lips of a pretty brunette and Hope knew just from the tone that she didn't mean it. Josie stood over top of her a dim fire burning in her eyes and the tribrid recognized it as the same fire she'd felt when she saw Josie's arm around Penelope.

She was jealous.

Josie must have seen Penelope watching her and everyone who knows the normally sweet and shy girl knows that she doesn't handle her jealousy or anger well.

Hope stared at her from the ground for a moment before another whistle was blown.

“It's fine.”

She honestly didn't care and how unaffected she was by the situation seemed to annoy Josie even more because all she did was roll her eyes before stalking off.

Hope waited until the feeling in her shoulder had returned before standing back up. Alaric gave her a look from the sidelines as she made her way towards him and acknowledged that this would be the injury she used to excuse herself. She could tell that he felt a little guilty since it was his daughter who knocked her down but Hope truly did not mind. In fact, even though it might have been a little petty she couldn't help feeling the slightest satisfaction in Josie's resentment.

~~~~~~

As cute as she looked in her jersey and shorts, Hope knew her current attire was less than appropriate for monster hunting, especially if she would be traipsing through the woods. After she made an effort to play the part of an 'injured player' she was sent to the nursing office in the school, alone. Obviously she didn't actually require any medical aid so she made a detour towards the dorms instead in search of an outfit that better suited her needs.

On the night she jumped into Malivore Hope had told Alaric to destroy all of her belongings, to burn everything so no one would be reminded that she had ever been there. It had seemed like a great idea at the time but now that she could really use some of her things it kind of sucked. Since it was more than likely that she wouldn't find anything to wear in her old room she didn't bother to look. Instead she made her way to Penelope's dorm in the hope that her ex hadn't gotten rid of at least a few of the items she used to store there.

Hope smiled softly when she had to use magic to unlock the door, the spell was one she used for her own room and she had taught it to Penelope when they had first begun to get close. It was like a magical combination code using words of their own choosing. Privacy was important to both of them so they had never told anyone else the words to get in, except each other. It made her happy to know that Penelope hadn't changed hers.

And apparently that wasn't the only thing that hadn't changed, stepping into Penelope's dorm was like walking back in time. Her room was exactly as it was when Hope had last left. Her deep purple bedding was in disarray which wasn't surprising because Penelope never made her bed, her logic being that “it doesn't make any sense when I'm just gonna mess it up again later”. Clothing littered the floor even though there was a perfectly good laundry basket sitting beside the closet completely unused. Her desk was cluttered with schoolwork, loose-leaf papers and textbooks, “organized chaos” she would refer to the mess. Hope didn't know how she was ever able to find any of their schoolwork but Penelope had never handed in an assignment late so the discord must have worked for her. The tribrid lovingly referred to Penelope as something akin to a tornado when it came to her living environment and quite often she would find herself cleaning up after her girlfriend much to the chagrin of the witch.

The only spot in the room that was actually well kept and neat was the reading nook that Penelope had set up in the corner across from her window. Penelope loved books, anyone who knew her knew that and Hope had helped to nurture that character trait by keeping the bookshelves well stocked with any new texts she found that she thought Penelope would enjoy.

Running her fingers along the spines of the novels Hope remembered the countless times that she would sit cuddled up with Penelope in the overstuffed love seat as the witch read to her from her favorite stories.

A tear rolled down her cheek but she quickly brushed it away. She'd wasted too much time already and it wouldn't be long before the game had ended and the students would start coming back. She set to work pulling open different drawers and within moments she found that quite a few things she had left in Penelope's room were still there. She quickly put together an outfit with skinny jeans and a long-sleeved top that smelled unmistakably like her ex. Most likely because it was one of the many articles of clothing that Penelope used to steal from her and wear like a stereotypical girlfriend. Hope had lost many sweaters and t-shirts because of Penelope's need to have a piece of her close by at all times but the Mikaelson never told her to stop. The top she had chosen didn't even have a hint of her own scent anymore because Penelope had worn it so frequently and Hope's heart swelled then because it meant that Penelope was still wearing her clothes without even realizing it.

Going to Penelope's room proved to be even more useful than just finding an outfit because the green-eyed girl had quite the extensive collection of magical herbs and charms. After she'd finished dressing, Hope was able to gather all of the items she needed from Penelope's stash to perform a locator spell on the monster she was supposed to be hunting.

She cut her hand, said a few words and allowed the blood to drop onto a map she laid out on the floor. She watched closely as the red liquid gathered in a specific part of the forest behind the school and she was thankful that she'd spent so much time running through it in the past years because now she knew the area well enough to have a good idea of where the spot on the map was.

She'd gathered up the materials, putting things back where she had found them and had just turned to leave when the door to Penelope's room swung open and Hope was suddenly face-to-face with the last (but also only) person she wanted to see.

Penelope stared at Hope in shock.

She'd noticed when the other girl had limped off of the field after being tackled by Josie and for some reason seeing her girlfriend hurt the stranger had really pissed her off. So much so that she'd gone searching for Hope to apologize on Josie's behalf. Her reaction didn't really make a lot of sense considering they barely knew each other but once she'd started walking it had been impossible to stop.

To her surprise though the nurse's station had been empty which had left Penelope a little confused because where else would the Mystic Falls High student have gone? Something had pulled her in the direction of the dorms and without knowing why she'd felt compelled to go. The last thing she had expected to find when she got there was the mystery girl performing magic on her bedroom floor.

“You're a witch.”

Penelope breathed out and hearing her voice snapped Hope out of the staring contest between the two of them and she took a few steps forward.

“Yea, and you're very observant.”

Penelope huffed at the sarcastic tone and crossed her arms over her chest.

“Why are you in my room? And how did you even get in?”

It was odd, usually Penelope was very particular about who got to see inside her personal space. Finding a stranger in her room would ordinarily send her into a blind fury, a sort of “act first ask questions later” kind of mindset. Everyone knew not to enter into her dorm without permission and because of the spell she had on her door they wouldn't be able to even if they tried. Privacy was important to her and in a boarding school with over a hundred supernatural students it was hard to come by. So she cherished what little she could find and protected it fiercely.

But with Hope for some reason Penelope wasn't upset at all. In fact Hope being in her room felt almost normal like she was supposed to be there.

It was confusing, the whole situation was extremely confusing and it didn't help when all the redhead offered in response to her question was a shrug.

“Like you said, I'm a witch.”

Hope then pushed past Penelope gently and started walking down the hall towards the exit in an attempt to signal that this should have been the end to the conversation. But just when she thought Penelope was going to let her leave without any more hassle a hand clasped around her upper arm and the touch alone was enough to send Hope's heart jumping up into her throat. The warmth of Penelope's body heat flowed through the fabric of her shirt and Hope could feel it burning her as if Penelope were on fire. It had been so long since they had shared any physical contact and it took everything the tribrid had not to begin sprinting in the opposite direction.

Penelope seemed to notice as the girl tensed under her hand and immediately retracted the offending limb.

“Wait, that's not good enough. Who are you?”

The ghost of Penelope's touch lingered on her skin and Hope rolled her eyes impatiently but stopped for a moment, turning her head to the side so she could talk to Penelope over her shoulder.

“Look I would love to stay and play twenty questions with you, truly I would, but I have other places I need to be so please just pretend like you never saw me and we can both move on with our lives.”

Hope didn't like being so terse with Penelope but she really did need to go and standing there with the girl her heart was still screaming for but who didn't remember her just wasn't something she wanted to do. Not to mention she still had to deal with the werewolf killing demon that she had promised Alaric she would get rid of.

But Penelope wasn't satisfied with the lack of answers. She knew there was something more to this mystery girl, could feel it as though the truth was right at the forefront of her mind but something was blocking her from seeing it. She wanted, no, she needed to know more, whatever the risk.

“Fine.”

Hope nodded, grateful that the witch seemed to be letting this whole exchange go and started to walk away again.

“But I'm coming with you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> let me know what you thought  
next chapter is a demon hunt and penelope finds out a bit more about hope also josie has a few questions of her own
> 
> don't forget to kudos/comment :)  
twitter: @posiewaves


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sooo did anyone else think I had totally abandoned this fic, cuz same
> 
> idk why but for some reason finishing multichapter fics is like next to impossible for me. this entire story is already outlined and partially written but even still, editing it is just not something I have felt like doing at all. literally this specific chapter has just been sitting in my drafts half-written for weeks. which is why with 3 months since the last chapter I am finally updating this thing.  
I don't want to make any promises cuz we all know I'm pretty shit at keeping them but hopefully with quarantine and everything going on right now I'll manage to get a bit more writing done.
> 
> I sincerely apologize to anyone who has been waiting all this time for an update, I suck wbk.  
anyways enough talk, please enjoy chapter 8
> 
> *I don't remember if I mentioned this in the last chapter or not but Raf is not trapped in wolf form and Hope is not trying to rescue him*

Penelope is insane, you don't have to tell her, she already knows it. Why else would she have blindly followed a girl she just met into the woods behind her school. Alone.

This day was quickly turning into the perfect setting for a horror movie and Penelope had unfortunately been cast as the dumb blond who goes out of her way to try and figure out where the strange noise is coming from rather than just running in the opposite direction.

Normally she didn't do things like this. Regardless of how pretty a girl was, Penelope usually had some standards, including not putting her complete trust in a stranger to not murder her in a forest. But something inside of her had told her that she was safe with Hope and that there was nowhere else she should be than by the redhead's side.

“What exactly are we doing again?”

Fallen leaves crunched under their feet reminding Penelope that autumn was quickly approaching and snow wouldn't be too far behind after that. Luckily it was still warm enough that layering wasn't important, yet.

“Well I'm hunting a monster that likes to eat pretty rich green-eyed witches, and you are following me into a potential death trap.”

Penelope rolled her eyes at Hope's words. The smaller girl had very obviously been trying to get rid of her since before they'd even left the school but the witch refused to budge and after ten minutes of arguing Hope had reluctantly relented.

It's funny, a part of Penelope feels like she almost remembers a time when bantering back and forth like this had been a common occurrence for her.

She sighed to herself, stepping over a large branch that had probably been knocked down during the last storm. She regretted not having thrown on some pants before they left, the sharp twigs and blood-hungry insects were not being too kind to her in the skirt that she was still wearing.

Hope was walking a little further ahead, taking the lead which was great since she was still refusing to tell Penelope where they were going. Infact she hadn't actually answered any of Penelope's questions so far and that was starting to really annoy the raven-haired girl.

“Are you ever going to tell me who you really are?”

Penelope couldn't see Hope's face but she did watch as the other teen's shoulders seemed to drop just a bit and her body stopped moving forward before Hope shook her head slightly and turned to look at her.

“I did tell you,”

Her eyes were soft but they held an expression of hesitance that Penelope wouldn't have noticed had she not been staring directly into them.

“My name is Hope Marshall. I'm a demon hunter and you guys have a demon thus why I'm here hunting.”

Penelope squinted and pursed her lips watching the redhead for any sign that she might be lying. She couldn't find one. Hope's poker face was strong but there was still something not quite right and Penelope could sense it, regardless of what Hope was saying.

“For some reason I just don't believe that.”

“Which part?”

“All of it.”

Hope snorted and turned back around. At least she was finding some amusement in Penelope's frustration.

  
  


Walking deeper into the woods Penelope stared at the back of her head trying to decipher anything she could about the stranger (was she still a stranger?). She didn't know why Hope was being so secretive. It's not like Penelope was planning on advertising her business to the world. She just wanted to get to know her a little better, maybe even potentially become friends. She could use some more of those, real ones anyway, her group of fangirls doesn't count.

The sun was already beginning to set meaning that they only had about two hours left of daylight. Hopefully the mystery girl got them where they needed to be quickly, Penelope wasn't sure if she wanted to be caught out here in the dark with a potential monster on the prowl. Although with how confident Hope seemed to be in her abilities maybe she wouldn't find herself in too much danger.

A twig snapped.

“What was that?”

Both girl's heads turned in the direction they thought the sound had come from then back to each other. Penelope's eyes widened but Hope remained visibly calm.

“Probably the thing I'm trying to kill.”

Hope subconsciously pushed Penelope behind her. She stood a little taller, letting her senses take over so she could pinpoint exactly where the monster was going to emerge.

“Okay, I'm gonna need you to turn around for me, just for a minute.”

Penelope looked at Hope as if she'd just grown a second head. Her heart was beginning to beat faster as adrenalin coursed through her veins.

“What? Why!?”

Hope took a breath trying her best to stay relaxed and to not yell at the girl who was clearly getting scared. Not that Penelope had to worry, Hope would never let anything happen to her, never.

“Because the monster I'm after eats werewolves so I need to draw it's attention away from you.”

Penelope's anxiety was rising. She couldn't see where the demon thing was but she could almost feel the black magic emanating off of it. She knew it was close and probably going to try to attack them, so why the hell was this girl speaking in riddles.

“I don't know if you haven't noticed,”

She placed a hand on her hip and gave Hope a pointed look.

“But I don't usually spend my Friday nights howling at the moon. I'm not a wolf.”

“No, but you are a very pretty little snack and it would be rather unfortunate if this thing confused you for me.”

If Penelope's stomach does a little flip at Hope calling her “pretty” she doesn't acknowledge it. She doesn't have time to because there's another twig snapping somewhere in the distance and Hope is giving her a pleading look of urgency that screams “just turn around idiot!” so she does.

“Okay okay I'm turning. I still don't understand why I needed to b-

Are you getting naked!? Wait why are you stripping!?”

A shirt, Hope's shirt, lands on the ground in front of Penelope and if she wasn't confused before she really has no idea what is going on now.

Hope just laughs and Penelope can't stop the blush that rises to her cheeks as she watches the rest of the redhead's outfit end up on the ground with the shirt. Penelope isn't a prude by any means, she likes looking at hot girls as much as the next person but for 1. she's taken and 2. they are literally about to become dog food and she hasn't even gotten her license yet.

“Look I know you don't really like to answer, well, any of my questions but please at least tell me why you need to be nude to fight this monster bec-”

It's when she hears the unmistakable sound of bones snapping that Penelope loses all care for privacy and turns around just in time to come face to face with a gorgeous large grey wolf with blue eyes standing where Hope was the moment before.

“Whoa.”

The question “what the hell are you?” would have made the most sense for Penelope to ask next but she was so shocked by what she was seeing that her brain literally refused to help her mouth form any words.

The wolf's, or rather Hope's eyes almost seemed to smirk at the witch's sudden inability to speak, but that would be impossible in her current form, right? She wasn't sure, Penelope had no frame of reference for any of this and Hope suddenly being a werewolf wasn't helping to curb her fear.

A loud crash from their left drew both girls’ attention and a creature that neither of them had ever seen before came hurdling out of the trees at full speed.

So Hope hadn't been lying about being there to hunt a demon after all.

Penelope froze unable to tear her eyes away from the monster so she didn't notice when Hope threw her a final look full of longing before letting out a low growl. When the demon's head tilted towards her Hope took off in the opposite direction from where it had emerged and away from Penelope.

It followed after her and within seconds Penelope found herself standing in the middle of the forest alone, watching as the two forms disappeared back into the trees and out of her sight.

~~~~~~

The last time Penelope had seen Hope was hours earlier when she had been in werewolf form being chased through the woods by a monster that ate her species. She hadn’t heard from her since then but the witch wasn't concerned. She had a feeling that Hope was fine, she could take care of herself and Penelope would definitely be seeing her again at some point.

She didn't know how she could be so certain about all of this but she was and that knowledge kept her relatively calm after the whole experience.

  
  


She was sitting in bed when a soft knock on her door caused her to quickly close the journal she had been writing in and shove it under one of her pillows before asking who it was.

Josie's voice filtered through the wooden barrier and Penelope immediately stood to let her in.

“Hey.”

“Hey.”

The brunette had recently showered, her hair was still damp and she'd changed into her pajamas before coming to Penelope's room. The smile that appeared on her face when the door opened didn't quite reach her eyes and Penelope knew that something was wrong. She guided them back over to her bed so they could sit across from each other while they talked about whatever it was that had Josie looking so dejected.

It was quiet for a moment while the brunette thought over her words. Penelope was anxious to fix the thing that she might have messed up (assuming this was about her) but she wasn’t going to push Josie to speak. She would when she was ready and not before.

“What happened to you today?” 

Penelope’s brow furrowed slightly, a lot had happened today but most of it no one other than her and Hope knew about.

“What do you mean?” 

“You disappeared halfway through the game and never came back.” 

Oh.

Josie stared at her questioningly and Penelope could see that she was more than a little hurt. But of course she would be, Penelope had promised to cheer her on from the sidelines during the game and she’d just left without any explanation. That was peak bad girlfriend behavior.

“I'm sorry. I know I should've been there. Something just came up and I had to leave.” 

It wasn’t even an excuse and Penelope felt immensely guilty for it. Josie is her girlfriend, that should also make her one of Penelope’s top priorities. She should have at least let her know that she was leaving. 

Although if she were being honest at the time she hadn’t really been thinking clearly and Josie hadn’t even crossed her mind. The pull that Hope had unknowingly had on her was so strong and Penelope still wasn’t quite sure what had made her follow the other girl without really thinking it through.

“It didn't have something to do with that redhead from Mystic High did it? I saw the way you stared at her and I couldn't help but notice that you left pretty quickly after she did.” 

Josie's tone wasn't exactly accusatory but it was obvious that she wanted answers and Penelope knew that she owed them to her. It was a long and kind of complicated story and she’d have to edit a few parts of it (like finding Hope in her room) if she didn’t want to upset the brunette even further. It didn’t exactly sound like fun but after a moment of contemplation she relented and told Josie as much as she felt comfortable admitting. 

It was enough though and Penelope watched as Josie’s expression shifted through a handful of emotions ranging from disappointment at Penelope choosing to spend time with a stranger over her, to surprise when she learned about Hope’s multiple abilities.

“Wow, a witch and werewolf?” 

When Josie asks this Penelope can pick up a tinge of jealousy in her voice and she isn’t sure what the most appropriate way to respond is. So she just nods. 

“And honestly that’s not even the craziest part. I don't know why but this girl, Hope, she just seems so familiar to me. Like I know her somehow but I just can't figure out from where. And when I'm with her, I don't know JoJo it's like somehow she knows me too.” 

They both go silent when Josie gets a faraway look in her eyes and Penelope wonders if maybe she said too much. She hadn’t planned on mentioning the stuff about feeling like maybe Hope isn’t a stranger after all but it had just kind of slipped out. Her word vomit was not one of her most attractive traits. And it would make sense if her new girlfriend doesn’t want to hear about how much time Penelope had devoted to analyzing Hope lately.

She was only mildly panicking internally when Josie took one of her hands into her own and their eyes met. 

“Pen, are you happy?” 

“What?” 

“I mean with us, are you happy with us?” 

That was not exactly the reaction she had been expecting but Josie’s question causes Penelope to think, like really think. She thinks about how during these past few weeks something has felt like it was missing, wrong in some way. She thinks about how this missing thing has caused her to get lost in her own mind on more than one occasion and how kind and patient Josie has been despite Penelope constantly pulling away. She thinks about how the hole in her heart would probably be much larger if not for the sweet brunette. 

But then she also thinks about Hope and how the few hours she spent with her today made her feel safer and more at home than Penelope has felt all summer. 

“I'm happy-ish.” 

She said finally and Josie continued to stare at her a while longer, her eyes seemingly searching for something. And Penelope doesn't know if she ever finds what she's looking for but in the end Josie still nods. 

“Me too.” 

Because even though she hasn't said it out loud Josie has recently begun to feel like something is off as well. Definitely not to the same degree as Penelope but still noticeably. 

She just hopes that with time things will get better. That she and Penelope will get better. And eventually they'll reach a place where they're both simply just happy. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't forget to comment/kudos
> 
> twitter: @posiewaves


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> heyyy I'm back!!! and so quickly too!!!  
I have to admit I'm quite proud of myself for getting this thing written so fast but I guess when you're trapped in quarantine it's not like there's much else to do :/
> 
> so this chapter is like the halfway point for this story so that's fun. it's also stupidly long and I had not anticipated that when I first started writing it. unlike the other chapters this one switches pov multiple times because there are more characters involved. it's based off of 2x04 however I changed a lot of the plot details cuz I just didn't feel like they were important
> 
> anyways that's a long enough note, go ahead and enjoy all 6500 words of this update :) and let me know what you think

Hope would be lying if she said she hadn’t enjoyed the afternoon she got to spend with Penelope. Just being around the other girl for longer than a few minutes had felt incredible. Of course it had stung every time she was reminded that the witch didn’t remember her, but even that pain had been greatly overshadowed by the joy of sharing her company again. She was glad that Penelope was so stubborn and had refused to stay behind when Hope had asked her too, even if it had meant that Hope had been more concerned with the ravenette’s safety than anything else. She still wouldn’t trade that day for anything, especially seeing as how she may never get another one like it.

She sighed to herself stuffing her textbooks into her locker before closing it. Today was the day of Mystic Falls High’s pep rally and they had mandatory attendance. Hope would rather be literally anywhere else than in the gym surrounded by a bunch of overexcited, hormone-fueled teenagers. But seeing as how she hadn’t heard about any new monsters since the demon she’d killed in the woods the other day, she really had no excuse not to go.

Slowly she began making her way towards the school gym, biding her time as much as she could. Cheering and applause were already ringing throughout the otherwise empty halls and if it weren’t for her amplified hearing she probably would have dismissed the screams that accompanied the sounds as just being a part of the pep rally ambiance.

“Raf stop!”

“What’s wrong with him?!”

“I don’t know!”

“Well do something!”

“You do something! He’s your friend!”

Raf? As in Rafael? Hope wasn’t sure but she was definitely hearing two separate shrieking voices, a guy’s and a girl’s. One of which she would know literally anywhere.

“Penelope.”

She whispered to herself confused as to why the witch would be in town and at her school. Her feet were already moving quickly towards the noise and they didn’t stop until she came face to face with a rather perplexing situation.

Penelope and Landon were trying and failing to calm down Rafael who was clearly not in his right mind. Landon was closest to him and even attempted to put his hand on his best friend’s shoulder until Raf growled causing Landon to jump back.

Penelope stayed a few feet away trying to keep her distance but it seemed like rabid Rafael had other plans because before she was able to react he lunged towards her.

Luckily Hope, who had remained unseen up until this point, was faster.

“_ Scalare. _”

A gate that had been pushed against the wall quickly flew closed and blocked Raf from being able to come near them.

“_ Ad somnum. _”

She forced Rafael to sleep and the hallway became quiet again.

Penelope and Landon shared wide-eyed expressions of surprise and awe towards the girl who had just appeared and saved the day.

“Who are you? And how did you do that?”

Landon asked, still quite bewildered by everything that had just happened. One second Raf had been his normal broody self then out of nowhere it was like he just snapped.

Hope rolled her eyes, looking back and forth between her ex and her old friend. She had no idea what was going on but they definitely knew more than her and since she’d just had to save them from getting mauled by a wolf, she wanted answers first.

“I think I should get to ask the questions here seeing as how this is my school and I’m pretty sure all three of you are trespassing.”

Landon shrank back under Hope’s pointed glare and Penelope had to push against his shoulder when she felt like he was getting too close into her personal space.

“Landon relax, this is Hope, the girl I told you could help us with our demon problem.”

He seemed to relax slightly at the mention of her name. So Penelope had told him about her, interesting.

The girl in question took a step closer to Hope. Gone from her face was any trace of fear that she may have felt from earlier and in its place her signature Penelope Park smirk. 

Hope used to swear up and down that her smirk was the most annoying feature her girlfriend had. But they’d both known the truth, the fastest way to get her to bend to Penelope’s every whim was for her to throw on that smirk accompanied by a small “please.” It had gotten to Hope every time.

“How are you always in the right place at the right time?”

Penelope was closer now, so close in fact that Hope could smell the mixture of honey and rosemary from her shampoo. Some things never change.

“Funny I was just thinking the opposite about you.”

That actually earned a small chuckle from the witch causing a smile to tug at the corners of Hope’s lips.

“So tell me, what exactly do you need my help with?”

~~~~~~

They had to carry Rafael’s unconscious body out into the parking lot to lay him on the floor of the van they had taken from Salvatore school and used to drive into town. Thankfully no one had seen them because trying to explain their current situation to anyone who wasn’t supernatural would be next to impossible.

Hope’s mind was still trying to understand the story Landon and Penelope had told her. Apparently that demon she killed in the woods wasn’t the only one Malivore had sent. It was all starting again, Landon’s life was at stake, the monsters were coming back and Hope couldn’t help but feel a bit guilty for all of it. Maybe if she had stayed in that dark empty pit then her friends wouldn’t be in danger yet again.

“Anyway, so we came here because I thought maybe since you’re a demon hunter or whatever then you might be able to help us. Because right now we are seriously lacking in the hero department.”

Penelope closed and locked the trunk of the van before turning to Hope with an almost pleading expression. She knew that in the witch’s mind they still didn’t really know each other. So Penelope willingly seeking her out and trusting her enough to ask for Hope’s help was a pretty big deal. And obviously if Penelope was in danger then there was no way that Hope was going to refuse to do something to fix it.

“Of course Penelope. I would be more than willing to help.”

The wide, genuine smile that Penelope gave her was more than worth any mess that she might get into by accepting to tag along on their strange little mission.

“You said ‘we’ though. Is it just the two of you or-”

“What the hell is she doing here?”

Of course.

Josie had gone to find her father to explain to him what was happening and to ask him for help identifying the demon they were up against. Penelope had told her before they even left Salvatore school that she wanted to ask Hope for her help as well but Josie hadn’t thought it would be necessary for the mystery girl to join them. In truth it wasn’t so much the thought of extra assistance that upset her, it was more that Josie didn’t want to have to watch her girlfriend shower Hope with her attention again. She had already had to forgive Penelope for skipping her game to run around the forest with Hope and that one time had been more than enough for her. 

But it looked like Penelope had gone ahead and done what she wanted to do anyway because now the pretty redhead was standing in front of her. 

The last time they had been this close Josie had taken it upon herself to tackle the other girl to the ground and she would be more than willing to do that again.

It was like Hope could read Josie’s mind when she thought that though because in the next second she had fixed the brunette with a sneer that seemed to say ‘try it, I dare you.’

Penelope cleared her throat then while Landon and Alaric shifted uncomfortably. They could feel the tension between the two girls but had no idea what it was about.

“Actually JoJo while you were talking to your dad Hope kind of saved mine and Landon’s asses from getting eaten by Raf. I know you might not like it but she can help us.”

Josie gave Penelope a questioning look but before she could ask her to explain what had happened Landon stepped forward and pointed to the rather large and conspicuous weapon in Alaric’s hand.

“Sir, what’s with the sword?”

The ex-headmaster seemed relieved that the attention was now being taken away from whatever drama was going on between the three girls and back to the real task at hand. He gave Landon a short grateful smile before holding the sword out for all of the teens to see.

“The demon we’re looking for is called an Oni, it doesn’t have a physical form of its own so it survives by jumping from one host body to the next. This sword is something the twins’ mother found on one of her recruitment missions in Japan. It’s laced with black magic and it’s the key to killing the demon.”

“Yea so all we have to do now is find it.”

Josie added to her father’s thought right before a loud bang could be heard from inside the van and the whole vehicle began to sway.

“I don’t think that’s going to be a problem.”

Hope gave Penelope a small nod to pull the trunk open and let the demon-possessed Rafael out before getting herself into a fighting stance.

~~~~~~

It should come as no surprise that the possessed werewolf kicked all of their butts and got away. This entire experience was turning out to be a lot more tedious than Penelope had first thought. 

When Josie had brought up the idea of coming to Mystic Falls High to ask her dad about the demon Penelope had been the first one to agree to go with her. Not just because she was supposed to be the dutiful girlfriend and tag along regardless but because she was sure that she would get to see Hope again. Penelope hadn’t been able to get the girl out of her head since their afternoon together and she had been more than a little eager to visit her. Finding the redhead had turned out to be surprisingly easy too, with Hope turning up and saving her life for a second time. 

Unfortunately getting her wish had come at a cost, the price being one seriously jealous Josie Saltzman which was the last thing they needed while in the middle of a monster hunt.

Too bad, that’s exactly what Penelope gets to deal with now since Alaric and Hope had gone to search for Raf and sent Josie, Landon, the sword and her to wait in the principal’s office. Penelope would much rather have joined the search team but the look Josie had given her as they’d left the parking lot was enough to make her keep her mouth shut and follow her girlfriend.

Once they’d gotten to Alaric’s office Penelope had taken it upon herself to put a bit of distance between her and Josie knowing that giving the brunette space was probably in her best interest.

She was snooping through some of the folders on Alaric’s desk when the sound of Josie chanting under her breath caught her attention.

Landon was watching Josie in the doorway clearly as confused as Penelope as to what exactly she was doing. When Josie turned and saw the both of them staring at her she smiled slightly.

“Barrier spell. It means no one can get in or out unless I say so. Including the two of you.” 

Was she being serious right now? Penelope did not feel like she needed a silly spell to keep her safe, let alone one that she knew Josie had intentionally chosen just to keep her in one place so she would know where Penelope was at all times. Or better yet, where she wasn’t.

She walked around the desk so that she could be standing directly in front of her borderline overbearing girlfriend.

“Josie is that really necessary? I’m a witch and he’s basically unkillable. We’re both more than capable of defending ourselves. Well I mean, I am anyway.”

“Hey?!”

Penelope smirked at the annoyed boy before waving him off with a flick of her wrist.

“No offense Landon but dying then coming back to life doesn’t really count as offensive magic.”

It was true and they all knew it. Sure being unkillable was a neat trick but it wouldn’t actually benefit any of them in a fight. Landon grumbled folding his arms and leaning against the wall.

“Well, offense taken but I understand your point.”

Josie pretended to ignore them both but Penelope had a feeling that this sudden over-protectiveness went beyond the brunette wanting to keep her safe from a demon.

“This is about Hope isn’t it?”

Her girlfriend refused to look her in the eye choosing to instead stare straight ahead and out of the window. Yea this was definitely about Hope.

“Guess she’s not the only one who gets to save your life today. You’re welcome.”

“Jo...”

Penelope didn’t even know how to respond to that and thankfully she didn’t have to because Landon chose that moment to break out of his broody stupor and actually insert himself into the conversation.

“Josie you know I’m a phoenix right? We have other options here.”

Both girls turned to him, a mutual look of annoyance mixed with exasperation on their faces.

“Like what Landon?”

Neither really wanted to hear what he had to say, assuming it was probably ridiculous anyway. But they also didn’t want to talk to each other anymore so indulging Landon seemed like the best thing to do to alleviate some of the tension building in the room.

“Malivore sent the Oni for me so I think we should let it possess me then one of you can kill me with this sword. Demon gets vanquished, I resurrect, we win!”

Okay, so maybe that was a bit too much indulgence. 

Josie stared at the boy incredulously while Penelope actually seemed to be considering what she’d just heard.

“Yea if it works Landon, we are not handing you over to some demon to find out.”

“Well-”

“No Penelope, do not encourage him! We are not doing this.”

Josie glared at her girlfriend causing Penelope to sigh and raise her hands in surrender. 

“Fine fine, okay. Sorry Landon.”

She really didn’t understand what the problem was, his idea actually kind of made sense but Josie wasn’t having it and the one thing Penelope did not need right now was to piss the brunette off even more by disagreeing with her.

Penelope walked over to where Landon was still standing and looking a bit crestfallen after they had rejected what he thought was a brilliant plan. They weren’t really friends but she did feel kind of bad for him. At least he was trying.

“I actually thought it was a good idea.”

“Thanks.”

Josie huffed, she was more than done with this demon hunting mission. In fact she was really starting to wish that when Landon had asked for their help this morning that she’d just said no. Lizzie had and now look where that had gotten her. The blond was probably enjoying her Friday off, laying in the sun back at the school while Josie, who had just been trying to be nice, was stuck working with a group of people that were getting on her last nerve.

“You are both ridiculous. Just stay here with the sword, I’ll be back.”

Uncrossing her arms Penelope watched her girlfriend walk towards the door without even a single glance in her direction. Josie couldn’t actually be serious about leaving her locked in this office with just the bird boy for company, could she?

“Wait where are you going?”

“To get back up.”

“Josie-” 

Penelope tried to follow after her but the barrier pushed her back. Stupid defensive magic. 

She probably deserved this anyway. Being locked in a room with Landon. It was her punishment for acting like such a crappy girlfriend as of late. Still she was not happy about this arrangement at all.

The demon-killing sword Josie had left with them was sitting on the desk, Landon moved to pick it up then looked at her.

“I bet you’d stab me if I was possessed.”

“You know what Landon, right now I really would.”

~~~~~~

Alaric and Hope were only a short distance down the hall on their way to his office when Josie came around the corner. She narrowed her eyes at Hope, still not understanding why she needed to be there with them, before facing her father.

“Did you find Raf?”

“We sent him home, the demon wasn’t in him anymore.”

The Oni was still on the loose and their little scooby gang was kind of at a loss for how to proceed. They needed to find it before it found Landon but they weren’t even sure where to begin searching.

Hope noticed then that something or rather someone was missing from Josie’s side and after a moment of looking around she turned to the brunette who appeared to have a permanent scowl etched into her face whenever her eyes met Hope’s.

“Where are Penelope and Landon?”

“I left them in the office with the sword.”

“Alone?”

Hope could not quite believe what she was hearing. Her ex-best friend had honestly thought that it was safe to leave Penelope and Landon on their own again after Hope had already had to save them once today. If it were up to her Penelope wouldn’t be leaving her side until they finished with the demon. Clearly Josie didn’t feel the same way.

“With a barrier spell, no one can get in. Do you really think I would leave my friend and **my** girlfriend unprotected?”

If it was possible Josie’s scowl seemed to deepen even further and she took a step towards Hope getting a little closer than was actually necessary. But Hope wasn’t about to back down.

“I don’t know, she was pretty unprotected this morning when **I** had to save her.”

The level of hostility radiating off of both girls was getting higher than Alaric was comfortable with and he still didn’t understand why. As far as he knew he was the only one who Hope had disclosed her true identity to, Josie shouldn’t even know who she is. So why did they seem like they were ready to go full UFC octagon on each other.

“Okay okay, girls calm down. I think everyone just needs to take a breath.”

The siphoner ignored her father in favor of continuing her glaring match with Hope. Who did this girl think she was to insinuate that Josie didn’t know how to keep her own girlfriend safe. She was way out of line and if Josie didn’t watch her temper then there was a good chance Hope was going to be lit up like a candle soon.

“Yea well I think the new girl here needs to learn her place and stop trying to flirt with my girlfriend. Just because you’re some weird breed of supernatural doesn’t make you special.”

Hope had never been on the receiving end of such intense jealousy from Josie before. Even when Alaric used to spend more time with her than his own daughters, Lizzie was the twin who would actually get upset. Josie was usually so sweet and after they had become best friends and started spending more time together Hope realized that the other girl really was just a kind-hearted person all around. Now Hope was not naive, she also knew that Josie had a temper, she just didn’t show it often. But when it came out (usually while she was protecting someone she cared about) the results could be quite drastic.

However, when Penelope was concerned Hope could not care less about Josie’s jealousy. In fact it was really starting to piss her off. Logically she knew that she couldn’t really blame the brunette for reacting the way she was to Hope stealing some of her girlfriend’s attention, but in Hope’s mind Penelope was and would forever be _her_ girl. And Hope would still continue to protect and defend her even if Penelope never remembered who she was, because Hope Mikaelson **is now** and **will always** **be** in love with Penelope Park.

“I never said that I was special and last time I checked Penelope is her own person. She’s more than capable of deciding who she does and does not want to talk to without you trying to control her.”

Josie actually looked like she was about to slap the pink right out of Hope’s cheek until a crash from the direction of Alaric’s office silenced them all.

It took less than a second for Hope to break out into a full-on sprint towards the noise with only one thought on her mind _ Penelope _.

She got to the office first, having the gift of speed on her side but the sight in front of her made her pause. Penelope was on the ground, Hope could smell blood, and Landon was nowhere in sight. 

It’s when she sees Penelope beginning to stir that Hope jumps back into motion and kneels down beside her. Gently she pulled Penelope’s face into her hands.

“Pen are you ok? Can you look at me?” 

The witch had blood dripping down the side of her head accompanied by a bruise that definitely would not be fading anytime soon. She looked a bit out of it but not seriously injured, thankfully.

“I’m fine really, I’m just a little dizzy.” 

Penelope offered Hope a small smile and subconsciously leaned further into her touch.

“Oh god, Penelope!”

Josie and Alaric came running through the door together and Hope barely had enough time to take her hands away from Penelope’s cheek before Josie was replacing them with her own. As much as Hope did not want to move away from the injured girl she knew that she was no longer the one who was supposed to be at her side in a moment like this. Very reluctantly she stood and took a few steps back.

“I’m fine JoJo I promise.”

“You’re not fine, you’re bleeding.”

Josie’s fingers hovered around Penelope’s wound, scared to touch the affected area incase she hurt her girlfriend further. Penelope just smiled at the brunette’s hesitance before lifting herself into a sitting position on the floor to show them all that she really was okay.

“It’s just a scratch.”

Brown eyes still watched her with worry but eventually Josie nodded accepting that the other witch wasn’t lying about how she was feeling just to act strong. 

It took a moment but then Hope remembered that there was still one less person in the room than there should be, the bird boy was gone.

“Penelope what happened? Where’s Landon.”

“Landon left, he has the demon in him.”

They all looked at her with surprise and confusion until realization dawned on the only adult in the group. Alaric rubbed a hand over his face out of exhaustion.

“Oh no, when we fought Rafael the demon must have jumped from him and into Landon. It waited until it was almost entirely alone before revealing itself. Then it took the sword and left.”

“Don’t forget smashing my head against the filing cabinet on the way out. Jerk.”

Hope rolled her eyes and hid the smirk that was threatening to show on her lips. Even while she was injured Penelope still needed to add her sarcastic humor to the conversation.

“But how did he even get out of the room, my barrier is gone.”

Josie looked down at Penelope then, seeing as how she was the only other person in the room at the time of Landon’s escape. The sheepish expression that took over the ravenette’s face after hearing her girlfriend’s question said it all.

“Yea that may have been my fault. I started trying to counter your spell after you left and I guess it worked. Sorry.”

“Penelope!”

“Okay let’s focus on what’s important here, where would he have gone?”

Another argument was not going to help them find Landon or kill the demon. They needed to put all of their drama on the back burner for a minute and actually think.

Josie gave Penelope another disappointed look then shook her head.

“Well my guess is the portal. But we don’t know where that is.”

Now that wasn’t entirely true. Hope remembered when she got thrown back out of Malivore she had found herself in the park at the center of town. Whether or not the portal was still there was a risky gamble at best but anything was better than nothing at this point and it’s not like they had any other options.

“Actually I may have an idea.”

~~~~~~

Alaric didn’t end up going with them to find Landon. The girls were certain that they could handle it on their own and he would just pose an unnecessary liability since he had no powers and nothing to really add in a fight. He wasn’t happy but he understood and stayed back while Hope, Josie and Penelope made their way to the center of town. Before they left Hope explained to them that she remembered seeing a suspicious mud puddle in the park a few days earlier. It was an incredibly thin and very obvious lie but they had all been so desperate to stop the demon and Landon that none of them paused to question her story.

What they had not been expecting to find when they got there was Landon dead on the ground and Lizzie chained to a tree. It had become clear to them all that Lizzie had killed him when she realized he was possessed and inadvertently absorbed the demon into herself. She even unintentionally growled at Hope for getting too close.

“Wow that was embarrassing, I am so sorry. We haven’t met yet have we? I’m Lizzie.”

And getting re-introduced to Lizzie Saltzman was something that Hope had surprisingly actually been looking forward to. They had been friends once and much like everyone else from her former life Hope missed her. But sharing names and backstories had to be placed on hold after they realized that decisions needed to be made. The demon needed to be stopped by whatever means necessary but killing Lizzie had not been an option that any of them were willing to consider. Somehow in the midst of multiple teenage girls arguing back and forth, Josie managed to absorb the dark magic in the enchanted sword and used it to exorcise the demon in Lizzie before killing it. 

It had been a terrifying and exhausting ordeal that ended with both twins unconscious and Penelope calling Alaric to come and pick them all up.

Now Hope was back home, sitting in the living room that she shared with the man who used to train her, while thoughts concerning everything that had happened in the past 24 hours filled her mind.

“So.”

Alaric stood in the doorway watching her. He looked tired and if the bags under his eyes were any indication of how he felt then he was probably going to fall asleep soon.

After they’d dropped off the girls and Landon back at the school and made sure that everyone was okay, the two of them had driven home in silence. Hope could sense even then that he was just dying to have a conversation with her and there was very little that she could do to stop it.

“So?”

He sighed then moved to sit next to her on the couch. It was strange, even though he didn’t have any memories of her from before Malivore a part of his brain still registered that she was important to him and that he cared very deeply for her. 

He knew that she wasn’t going to like what he was going to say but he also knew that it still needed to be said.

“Hope, I think you need to go back to the Salvatore school.”

“I had a feeling you were going to say something like that.”

She slumped back against the couch, refusing to make eye contact with him.

“With the monster’s coming back everyone is in danger and I’m not there to help them anymore but you could be.”

“Look I get it, I really do, but I’m not going back to that school.”

Alaric may not remember everything but after spending time with Hope recently he had learned that this girl was not one to back down from a fight. There was no way she was saying no to his suggestion because she was just scared of the risk that battling monsters may pose for her. This had to be personal.

“Does this have something to do with Josie and Penelope? You and my daughter were practically at each other’s throats today but last time I checked she doesn’t even know who you are.”

Now it was Hope’s turn to sigh. Her and Josie hadn’t even tried to hide their feelings for each other today and everyone had noticed. She hadn’t thought that she would ever have to explain the intricacies of her old relationships with anyone let alone Alaric, she wasn’t sure if she was ready to. But he was asking and even if she tried to avoid the question tonight chances are he would figure it out at some point and then they would just have to have this conversation all over again.

She took a breath, considered her words carefully then finally let her eyes meet the man’s next to her.

“Before I jumped into Malivore Penelope and I were in love, like epic love. The kind of love you only read about in fairytales. And Josie was our best friend. And now they’re together and neither one of them remembers what we were to each other.”

That actually made a lot of sense. Alaric had been expecting an explanation like that. He remembered what it was like to be younger and in love once, how irrational it had made him at times. Especially the kind of ‘epic love’ that Hope seemed to be describing. Losing something like that was awful, he knew because he had gone through it when Jo died. He couldn’t imagine what it must be like for Hope to have to watch the girl she loves date her best friend and for neither of them to understand the truth.

He reached out to place a hand on her shoulder and when she didn’t flinch away he pulled her into a gentle side hug.

“I’m sorry.”

And he truly was, she knew that. It felt good to be held though so she leaned further into the embrace and let her guard down a bit. Tears began to build in the corners of her eyes and she didn’t try to fight them back, it had been a long day and she was too tired.

“I know that me not wanting to go back is selfish, I get that. But I just can’t stand the thought of telling them the truth and both of them hating me for it. I’m already miserable, I don’t need them to be too.”

She doesn’t tell him that what she’s really scared of is the possibility that she might tell Penelope everything and Penelope will still choose to be with Josie anyways. Instead she just cries quietly while Alaric holds her in a way that really makes her wish her mom and dad were still alive. Because a hug from Klaus or Hayley right then would have made her feel so much better, it always had.

“Shh, it’s going to be alright Hope, it will be alright.”

Alaric isn’t her parent and he isn’t the girl that Hope would really like to be cuddled up against but he is there and he does care so she allows him to keep hugging her and whispering words of comfort into her ear. 

But she doesn't believe him, not really. Because after everything that has happened today Hope is starting to wonder if maybe the only way to keep everyone she cares about safe and to stop Malivore from sending any more demons is for her to jump back in. And the thought of doing that doesn’t upset her as much as it maybe should because in her mind she doesn’t really have anything to lose.

~~~~~~

When Josie woke up the first thing she noticed was that she was not in her own bed. Fortunately though any confusion she may have had as to her current location was quelled as soon as she saw Penelope sitting on the blankets next to her, reading. 

The witch put her book down when she noticed the brunette was awake and Josie smiled up at her, happy that Penelope was with her. 

“Hey, how are you feeling?”

“Like I just absorbed way more dark magic than can possibly be healthy. But I think I’ll live.” 

“Good because I am definitely not ready to live in a world where the Josette Saltzman doesn’t exist.”

They both chuckled and Penelope found herself reaching down to brush a few stray hairs out of Josie’s eyes. 

She had been genuinely scared after everything that had happened in the park, that’s why she’d brought her girlfriend back to her room, so that she could see for herself that the brunette was okay. After Josie had passed out a deep-rooted panic had taken over Penelope’s entire being, and feelings that she didn’t even realize she had for the other girl had surfaced. The main one being guilt over the way she had been treating her lately especially with matters concerning a certain redhead.

“So listen about today, I just wanted to apologize for bringing Hope into things. I know that you didn’t want me too and it was so unfair of me to just force you two to work togeth-”

“Penelope stop, it’s okay.”

Josie brought her hand up to her cheek where Penelope’s was still laying and laced their fingers together.

“I mean it’s not, but I don’t really want to talk about her right now. Besides you were kind of right, Hope did help in a way. She led us right to Landon and without her we may not have gotten to Lizzie in time so I guess I don’t completely hate that she was there.

And that was partially true. Hope had helped them and Josie could admit that, but the real reason she was so quick to forgive Penelope was because she was still holding onto some guilt of her own. She never should have left Penelope locked in that room. And even though no one else (except maybe Hope) blamed her for what had happened, because Josie had no way of knowing that it would result in the ravenette getting injured, she still wasn’t going to stop blaming herself anytime soon.

“Really?”

“Yea. But can we maybe make this like a one-time thing because even though I don’t hate her I still don’t want to be like best friend’s with her or anything.”

“Whatever you say JoJo.”

Penelope smiled and gently squeezed her girlfriend’s hand, relieved that the siphoner wasn’t still upset with her. And her expression then was just so soft that Josie couldn’t help but push herself up to capture the other girl’s lips with her own. 

The show of affection doesn't cause Penelope to pull away like Josie anticipates that she might, instead she actually raises her hands to rest softly on Josie's waist. This is new considering every other time they’ve been intimate the green-eyed girl has either barely reciprocated or never shown much interest.

Feeling this welcome change Josie began to deepen the kiss going so far as to push Penelope onto her back so that she could straddle her hips. The witch stared up at the brunette wide-eyed, wondering where her sudden burst of energy had come from since she was just unconscious minutes earlier but then Josie was kissing her again and her mind went blank. She could feel when Josie’s tongue brushed against her lips asking for entrance and Penelope hesitated for only a moment before granting it. She felt warm and a bit light-headed and she wasn’t sure if that was from the kissing or the lack of oxygen but she tried her best to ignore it so that she could appease the girl on top of her. 

It was when Josie’s hips started to move slowly against her own in a purposeful rhythm that she realized where this was heading. She didn’t react right away though not until Josie started to pull off her shirt then Penelope decided to gently stop her by placing her hand on top of the clothing. 

Their eyes met and Josie gave her a questioning look.

“Not yet okay?” 

Because this was all just a bit too much for Penelope right now and she had so many unknown feelings swimming around in her head that it just wouldn’t be right.

Josie allowed her shirt to fall back in place then quickly climbed off of Penelope’s lap trying not to look as hurt as she felt. She understands that maybe they're going too fast and she would never want to pressure her girlfriend into something that she’s not ready for but rejection, especially when it’s coming from the person you like the most, still stings.

Penelope noticed the way Josie refused to make eye contact and was looking everywhere around the room but at her. She could feel herself panicking slightly at the sad expression on the brunette's face because the last thing she had intended to do was make her feel unwanted. 

“Not yet, but soon I promise.” 

That earned a small smile from Josie who looked at her for a moment then lied back down, curling herself into Penelope’s side.

“Okay.”

She placed a barely-there kiss on Penelope's cheek and she was close enough that Penelope could feel her eyelashes flutter against her skin.

“Thank you for staying with me tonight.”

Her voice was no louder than a whisper, her previous energy had disappeared and she was asleep again within seconds.

Sleep doesn’t come as easily for Penelope though. She’s exhausted of course but her mind was still racing over everything that had happened that day. Most of her thoughts seem to center around one point, Hope. And even as she’s lying there with her girlfriend wrapped around her she just can’t get the smaller girl out of her head. 

The other thing that she can’t stop thinking about now is Josie and how eager she is to progress the physical nature of their relationship. It’s normal, they’re teenagers and hormonal so of course this would seem like the natural next step. But to Penelope it doesn’t feel natural and she doesn't understand why the prospect of having sex with her girlfriend for the first time is filling her with so much dread.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't forget to kudos/comment :)
> 
> twitter:@posiewaves


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey. it's been a while and I suck at updating but what else is new. I hope all of you are doing well and thank you for being so patient with me.
> 
> here is chapter 10 or as I have started referring to it hizzie's chapter because that's what it is. this chapter is based off of 2x05 which was a pretty hizzie centric episode so it only made sense that my story would match. I'm not so sure about the way it turned out but I hope you like it 
> 
> enjoy

_ It was Friday night and most of the students at Salvatore school could be found out in the woods drinking and partying their lives away. Most, except for a small group of giggling witches and one tribrid who had decided that the party with their classmates wasn’t nearly as fun as they had hoped it would be so they’d migrated inside to the dorms where it was relatively quiet and much more comfortable. _

_ Hope was sitting on the carpeted floor of the Saltzman twin’s room with Penelope between her legs and her girlfriend’s back against her chest. Lizzie and Josie sat across from them, both leaning against Lizzie’s bed. _

_ They’d been talking and sharing snacks for the better part of an hour now and all four of them were slightly tipsy from the small amount of alcohol they had drank before leaving the party. It made for a very relaxed and enjoyable hangout experience. This was how they all preferred to spend the last night before the weekend, together without any sort of outside expectations. _

_ Josie looked at each girl, her eyes never staying on any one of them for too long before letting out a thoughtful sigh. _

_ “Do you guys ever wonder what we would be doing right now if we hadn’t started talking. Like if we weren’t friends?”  _

_ The room quieted for a moment then Lizzie scoffed and nudged her sister with her shoulder. _

_ “Jo no offense but that sounds really depressing, why are you thinking about it?” _

_ It was an odd thought to have, Josie knew that. And maybe it was the alcohol making her a bit more emotional than usual or maybe she was just feeling extra sentimental tonight. Either way, now that she’d brought it up they all couldn’t help but imagine what a world like that would look like. A world where they weren’t a significant part of each other’s lives. It wasn’t a pleasant thought. _

_ Josie shrugged. _

_ “I don’t know I guess sometimes I just feel really lucky to have you all. It’s only been like a year since we started hanging out, imagine how much fun we could’ve had when we were little if we hadn’t practically been sworn enemies.” _

_ They all chuckled at that. Baby Hope, Lizzie and Josie had not gotten along at all, though it was mainly Lizzie and Hope who had always been at odds with one another. Jealousy was a powerful emotion and both girls had felt at least a bit of it towards each other. That had only gotten worse after Hope had lost her parents and closed herself off almost completely. It wasn’t until Penelope had entered the picture that she’d been able to open up again and the rift between her and Lizzie finally began to mend. _

_ Hope offered the brunette a soft smile, she understood what Josie was trying to say and she agreed, they really could’ve ruled the school together. But the past was the past, they couldn’t change it and even if they could Hope wasn’t so sure that she would want to. Things had turned out pretty great in the end and she definitely wasn’t willing to sacrifice anything she had managed to find now for what could have been back then. _

_ “I mean yea Josie you’re right, we definitely missed out on a lot but we’re all here now and I think that’s what we should focus on.” _

_ “Besides,” _

_ Penelope tilted her head up to look at her girlfriend then turned back to the twins with a smirk. _

_ “I didn’t even come to Salvatore until last year and we already know it would’ve been pretty much impossible for you to have a good time without me.” _

_ Lizzie rolled her eyes in fake annoyance. Maybe once upon a time she and Penelope wouldn’t have been friends, in fact once upon a time they probably would’ve hated each other but having Hope and Josie there to act as occasional referees meant that they actually enjoyed each other’s company most of the time. Lizzie liked to think of Penelope as her super annoying cousin, she loves her but that doesn’t always mean she has to like her. _

_ “Wow, egotistical much?” _

_ “I only speak the truth princess.” _

_ Josie giggled while her sister glared at the use of Penelope’s nickname for her. The ravenette knew how much she didn’t like it and still insisted on using it when she wanted to get a reaction from the blond.  _

_ Hope gently squeezed her girlfriend’s hand. _

_ “Pen, please stop antagonizing our friend.” _

_ It was a very halfhearted attempt at reigning in the witch’s attitude and they all knew it. Hope’s pointed stare was usually enough to make even the most disobedient student fall into line, but with Penelope, it was like fighting a losing battle and the worst part was that Penelope knew how whipped the tribrid was for her and used it to her advantage. _

_ Batting her eyelashes and feigning innocence, Penelope gave Hope her best pout, something she really didn’t do often but she was as tipsy as the rest of them so you can’t hold it against her. _

_ “She just makes it so easy but fine.” _

_ Hope leaned down and placed a soft kiss on her pouted lips and Penelope immediately melted under her touch. It was easy for them to get lost in each other, even after being together for a year, every kiss was as good, maybe even better than the first. _

_ They only pulled apart when they heard Josie’s awws and Lizzie’s fake gag. _

_ “Who would've thought that both of the girls I used to have crushes on would end up together and that we would all be in the same friend group.”  _

_ To anyone who wasn’t a part of their inner circle Josie’s comment would have seemed odd and maybe a bit distasteful but they were all secure enough in their relationships with each other that they knew she didn’t mean any harm by it.  _

_ When Penelope came to Salvatore, Josie had been the first person she’d met. The brunette had given her a tour including the lowdown on how things worked at the supernatural school. They’d hit it off and easily became friends but it didn’t take long for Josie to start seeing Penelope as something more. After she and Hope had started dating Josie was more than a little heartbroken. Her childhood crush and her current crush, both of whom she was friends with, had ended up together while she was left to watch from the sidelines. In the beginning it was hard, to say the least. Josie needed distance from the happy couple and even though neither Hope nor Penelope wanted to stop spending time with her, they knew that it was the only way to preserve what remained of their friendship. They had never intended to hurt the sweet brunette but when you’re in love you have to follow your heart and that’s what they had done. It wasn’t easy but eventually, with time and patience, they all managed to get through the rough patch and now they were stronger than ever. Josie had become Hope and Penelope’s number one shipper and the girls always made sure to make time specifically for the three of them (plus Lizzie when she felt like joining). _

_ “I still can’t believe you liked us.”  _

_ Hope spoke softly with a teasing tone that made Josie blush. Sometimes she couldn’t believe it either, all of that seemed so long ago. Luckily Penelope was there to save her from having to respond immediately. _

_ “Well, what’s not to like?” _

_ Josie rolled her eyes but smiled. _

_ “It was a dark time.”  _

_ Penelope’s mouth dropped open and she pretended to be offended making them all laugh. It was amazing how far they had come, to be able to joke about a situation that at one time had threatened to tear them apart. It just further proved that this was how things were always supposed to work out. _

_ “I always knew they weren't right for you Jo, Penelope and Hope just make sense together somehow.”  _

_ Lizzie looked between her sister and her two friends. _

_ “Satan and the Hero.”  _

_ That of course made Penelope’s smirk reappear and she settled even closer to Hope, if that was possible. _

_ “Aww princess I knew you loved us.”  _

_ Hope, Josie and Penelope shared a laugh at Lizzie’s expense while the siphoner huffed and folded her arms, trying and failing to conceal a smile of her own. _

_ “Shut up or I'll take it back.” _

~~~~~~

It was warm outside, the sun was bright and the citizens of Mystic Falls were taking advantage of the nice weather including Hope who was just sitting on the grass in the center of the park, waiting. 

When she had woken up this morning after everything that had happened the previous day Hope had immediately decided to post herself beside the mud pile Malivore had spit her out of. Until yesterday she hadn’t realized that the monsters were coming back and that had been a huge mistake, one that resulted in Penelope getting hurt and her old friends almost being killed. Guilt didn’t even begin to describe the emotions she was feeling because of this which is why she was sitting there. If anything else decided to crawl its way out from the depths of hell she would be ready to send it right back.

As much as the situation sucked it was also nice for her to have something to focus on again. She was great at killing supernatural bad guys, it felt good, helped her relax and provided a distraction from the other more mundane parts of her life. Those parts mostly consisted of thoughts concerning Penelope and how much she still loves her. But none of that matters right now because now she has a mission and Penelope Park has Josie. As much as it may kill Hope to admit that, it’s the truth and she was finally beginning to understand that even though she will always love Penelope, maybe she and the beautiful green-eyed girl just aren’t meant to be anymore.

Hope sighed and shifted in her spot trying and failing to clear her thoughts of the witch. It was a hard task to accomplish when she had nothing else to fill the silence with. She just needed to be patient because eventually one of Mailvore’s disciples would be making its way out of the hole and she would have lots of opportunities to release the tension building inside of her.

“Hope Andrea Mikaelson.”

That voice combined with her name on the person's lips was enough to make Hope whip her head around so quickly it’s a wonder she didn’t snap her own neck.

Lizzie Saltzman stood behind her with her hands resting on her hips and a smirk on her face that said she was feeling very proud of herself.

“W-what?” 

Hope managed to choke out the question as she stared at her friend in shock.

“It’s official I remember everything. When I woke up from the dark magic Josie blasted me with, you popped into my messed up brain along with an uncomfortably intrusive flashback.”

The blonde spoke with such a blasé tone it was almost like she was used to finding out that people she once cared about had been wiped from her memory and this situation with Hope was nothing new. But then again that’s kind of always been Lizzie’s personality, anything that isn’t directly related to her is usually treated as more of an afterthought, not that Hope really cared. She was just excited that finally someone seemed to know who she was.

“How? You are literally the only person on the planet who knows I exist.” 

Standing and walking towards the other girl Hope tried to lean in for a hug which was not something she would usually do under normal circumstances but Lizzie put up a hand to stop her.

“Our epic former frenemy reunion is gonna have to wait, we have bigger drama.”

Hope gave her a questioning look that made Lizzie sigh then place her hand on the tribrid’s shoulder out of sympathy. She knew the smaller girl was going to be crushed by what she had to say but it still needed to be said.

“Josie and Penelope are having sex tonight.”

“What?”

It felt like someone had just punched her in the gut. Hope’s face fell and her lips quivered slightly. Her emotions changed so quickly from elated to devastated that it made her head hurt. Penelope and Josie having sex? No that can’t be right. Even though she knew it made sense for two teens in a relationship to partake in such activities, this was Josie and Penelope, her best friend and the love of her life and there's just no way that fate could be this cruel to her. 

“There’s a decades dance-”

“Okay but that doesn’t mean-”

“Josie asked me to find an excuse to stay with my dad and she's been smiling so hard I'm pretty sure her cheeks are going to split in two soon.”

“Oh.”

Lizzie squeezed Hope’s shoulder gently then a look of determination came over her features.

“You have to stop it, speak your truth, spill the beans, tell your tale.”

The redhead took a breath and a step back. This was not the kind of mess she thought she’d find herself in today and truthfully she was just a little too shocked and a little too hurt to actually want to keep talking about it.

“Why didn’t you tell her?”

Lizzie rolled her eyes as if the answer was obvious. 

“Because I didn’t want to be the one to break her heart. That’s your job.”

Hope turned away from her then, her eyes cast downwards.

“I don’t know Lizzie, I’m not so sure that I should.”

And she really wasn’t because after yesterday Hope wasn’t so sure about anything anymore. If her suspicions were correct that she was the reason the monsters were starting to come back then would it be fair of her to go and announce to the world who she really was if it meant that she would likely have to jump back in the mud again? She’d already broken Penelope’s heart once and now that she was moving on maybe it was for the best. Hope didn’t have to like it, in fact she hated it and it hurt worse than she could express but all she truly cared about was the safety of her friends, of Penelope and the ravenette’s happiness. If Josie made her happy then who was she to stand in the way, especially when right now she was nothing more than a perfect stranger to the witch who didn’t remember her.

Lizzie though did not feel the same way at all.

“What do you mean?!”

She practically yelled which drew the attention of a few people walking by, not that she cared in the slightest.

“Go tell them who you are! God you and Penelope were like the most insufferable couple to have to be around. Always hanging off of each other all googly-eyed and happy. It would've been gross if it wasn't a little cute.” 

That earned a small smile from Hope who already knew that the blonde held a secret soft spot for her and Penelope even though she always liked to pretend otherwise.

“You thought we were cute?” 

Lizzie huffed and crossed her arms because of course out of everything she said that’s the point Hope would choose to focus on.

“I would never admit that under normal circumstances and definitely never in front of Penelope so if you tell anyone I will deny it but desperate times call for desperate measures. Now will you please stop my sister from making a huge mistake and giving her virginity to the dark lord herself.” 

And maybe she’s right, maybe Hope is giving up too quickly. Maybe she’s gotten used to having to figure everything out on her own lately because no one has been able to offer her any advice since they lost their memories and now for the first time in weeks she’s seeing things from a different perspective. Maybe if Lizzie thinks that it’s worth it for her to at least try then maybe, just maybe it is.

Hopeful blue eyes stared back into her own and Hope was contemplating giving in and allowing Lizzie to drag her back to Salvatore school when the mud in front of them began to bubble.

“Ugh now is so not a good time.”

There was a puff of smoke and suddenly a woman who looked like she’d just stepped out of a retro 80’s music video was standing in front of them. Both girls were annoyed by the abrupt appearance of a new monster even though Hope had known it was coming and was prepared, the issues in her personal life were kind of taking precedent at the moment.

“Who the hell are you?”

The Madonna look-alike smiled, taking in the two teenagers. 

“I’m The Keeper.”

Her expression said that she was pleased about something and both Hope and Lizzie took hesitant steps backward.

“And this is going to be a lot easier than I thought.”

She laughed then raised her wrist showing off a gold bracelet that almost seemed to glow with magic. 

“Welcome to the game.”

~~~~~~

The game in question turned out to be a load of bullshit, no surprise there. Lizzie and Hope spent hours running around an 80’s themed labyrinth of Mystic Falls that kept killing them only to restart all over again. They found out from the blonde bitch who brought them there that the only way to escape was for one of them to take her place as The Keeper which of course was a sacrifice that neither was willing to let the other make.

After refusing her deal they had been forced to run through the forest and away from the giant Minotaur that she sent to kill them. It seemed like now they had finally lost him and had a moment to catch their breath.

“That was close.”

Hope breathed heavily while Lizzie sagged against a tree.

“Too close. Now what do we do?”

They were kind of at a standstill for the moment, their only options were to keep going through the endless cycle of running and dying or give in to The Keeper’s demands. That’s what Hope thought anyway but apparently Lizzie had another idea.

She gave Hope an exasperated look and the tribrid tried not to roll her eyes already having a pretty good guess of what the blonde was going to say next.

“Huh I don't know if only we had something to talk about like maybe a burning question or some mysterious choice that demanded an explanation.”

Hope raised her hands in defense. 

“Okay I get it.”

She knew that Lizzie would probably bring this up at some point because if the roles were reversed Hope would have been asking the same thing.

“For the record I was going to tell everyone that I was back but then I saw Penelope and Josie and how happy they were. It just seemed like you were all better off without me.”

Hope’s mind filled with flashbacks of the night she showed up at Salvatore school searching for Penelope only to find her wrapped around her best friend. She’d be lying if she said that she hadn’t thought about speaking up before then but after seeing the two of them together and how it seemed like everyone had moved on without her, not telling them all the truth just became the kinder route for her to take.

“What is wrong with you?”

Lizzie’s eyes widened in disbelief at what she had just heard. Had Hope lost her mind while she was in Malivore because it kind of seemed like it. If she could have slapped the redhead without receiving a slap back in response then she would have.

“Do you really have that much of a hero complex that you couldn't just ask one of us how we were doing?”

“Look I know that it seems kind of-”

“Dumb, selfish, controlling-”

“Painful.” 

Hope scoffed at Lizzie who looked down at the ground slightly ashamed. She wasn’t trying to be a bitch and maybe in the heat of the moment with their current situation she kind of forgot to take her friend’s feelings into consideration. To her it seemed so easy to just tell everyone the truth but if Hope hadn’t then there must have been a good reason why. And now looking at the redhead whose eyes were filled with nothing but longing and regret, Lizzie started to understand.

“No one has been better off without you, trust me.”

She spoke softly and with as much sincerity as she could.

“Josie and Penelope aren’t in love and they aren’t really happy. They're just using each other to fill a giant hole you left in all of us after you disappeared from existence.” 

Lizzie could say this because unlike her sister and Penelope, she could actually remember what their lives had been like pre-Malivore. She knew how happy they had been back then and whatever forced emotions the two girls were expressing now didn’t even come close.

“If I could remember you then maybe that spell Josie used on me could bring everyone’s memories back. You and Penelope are made for each other which is why you need to tell her and Josie before they sleep together.”

Hope shook her head and moved to sit on a fallen log, Lizzie still leaning against the tree behind her. Everything always seemed so simple when the blonde put it into context. That was probably because of her penchant for brutal honesty and no bullshit attitude. But Hope knew that when it comes to love triangles and matters of the hearts there is no such thing as simple. 

Her, Josie and Penelope had been through something very similar to this once before and it was awful. At least in that instance Josie and Penelope hadn’t actually dated. She couldn’t imagine how much worse it would be if they were to go through all of that again now.

“I get it Lizzie I really do but even if I was willing to tell them the only way for me to go back is if you stay here and I can’t let you take that deal especially when it’s my fault that the demons are coming back anyway. I never should have left Malivore in the first place.”

“Oh shut up Hope.”

Lizzie’s voice rose with annoyance. She was done with Hope’s martyr behavior, it was getting stale and frankly, at this point her excuses were just pissing the blonde off. She looked towards the ground and seeing a rather large stick beside her foot she began to think of a plan.

The self-pity (though deserved) needed to stop and Hope needed to go back to the real Mystic Falls before it was too late and Josie and Penelope did something that they would all really regret. Even though she would never say it out loud the world needs a Hope Mikaelson in it and Lizzie wasn’t going to let the girl give up now, not when there was still time to fix things.

“We both know you belong at that school with our friends fighting monsters and defending the weak or whatever. They need you which is why you are going home.”

“What-”

Hope started to turn back to question Lizzie but she didn’t even get the chance to finish her thought before everything around her was fading to black.

~

When she came to Hope was alone in the forest and she could hear the sounds of growling coming right towards her. Her head was sore from where Lizzie hit it and she’d probably be more upset about that if she wasn’t about to get eaten by a Minotaur. 

Quickly jumping to her feet Hope scanned the area around her for a weapon and almost laughed at the irony when the only thing she saw was the stick that Lizzie had used on her. She grabbed it then snapped it in two preparing herself to fight when the demon burst through the trees in front of her. It moved fast but right before it reached her it was falling to the ground with a thud and an arrow sticking out of it’s back.

Confused, Hope looked up only to see Lizzie walking out of the treeline holding a bow. She smiled when she saw Hope.

“Cool right? I found it back in town and figured it could be useful.”

Hope just nodded still a little stunned from almost being attacked and also at seeing her friend again. She had thought that after Lizzie had left she wouldn’t be coming back and if she’d made the sacrifice then they wouldn’t be standing together right now.

“You didn’t take the deal.”

Relief flooded Hope’s veins knowing that Lizzie hadn’t gone through with it for whatever reason. 

Lizzie just rolled her eyes.

“No, turns out the bitch was lying about everything, not that I’m surprised. I am so done with playing her game.”

“Me too.”

Both girls looked down at the monster at their feet.

“You know I haven’t forgotten that you bashed my head in with a tree branch.”

Hope fixed the taller girl with a pointed stare which Lizzie waved a hand at dismissively.

“Oh please get over it, it had to be done.”

“Did it though?”

There was a pause then they both started laughing. They were tired and the whole situation was kind of insane and more than a little funny now that they weren’t facing imminent death.

A groan from the Minotaur drew their attention and Hope glared at it in annoyance.

“Well if we’re not getting out of here then I’m at least killing this thing.”

Because neither one of them wanted to waste any more time being chased by the stupid creature. Lizzie stepped back and motioned for Hope to go ahead.

“Please be my guest.”

Hope tightened her grip on the stake in her hand then plunged it into the chest of the half-man half-beast. It let out a loud yell then went still and the girls found themselves blacking out again. 

The world around them flipped completely upside down then spun a few times. When it came back into focus they were able to open their eyes. 

They were home.

“Huh that was oddly simple. I guess there’s a loophole for everything.”

Lizzie offered Hope a smile which she returned, both grateful to no longer be stuck inside of the game.

“So?”

“What?”

Hope pretended to not understand even though she knew what Lizzie was asking and the blonde narrowed her eyes before nudging her shoulder.

“Will you come to the dance with me or am I going to have to drag you there kicking and screaming because I promise you I will.”

There was no doubt in Hope’s mind that Lizzie would make good on her threat and even though it would be funny to watch Lizzie try and force her to move, Hope really wasn’t in the mood for any more fights. She didn’t want to go, not at all, but after spending time with Lizzie and listening to all of the points that the siphoner made about her current circumstances Hope wasn’t entirely confident anymore that letting Josie and Penelope go through with their plans was the right decision. 

She looked at the pile of mud that was still oozing on the ground then back up to Lizzie who was waiting for an answer. It felt amazing to finally have someone who remembered her again especially after she had been so certain that no one ever would. And maybe that positive emotion was swaying her judgment but there was some small part of Hope that told her it would be okay to forget about Malivore and the monsters for a few hours if it meant that she wouldn’t have to completely disappoint the blonde.

“Okay yea I’ll go.”

Whether or not she was actually going to try and stop Josie and Penelope, she hadn’t decided yet but Hope knew that if she didn’t at least go and see the ravenette one more time then she would regret it and she already has enough things in her life that she regrets without adding this to the list as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> let me know what you thought and I'll try to be back soon with another update :)
> 
> don't forget to comment/kudos  
twitter: @posiewaves


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *this is my first time writing smut so please be gentle with me*  
*this chapter has 2 parts because the 2nd half was too short for me to make it into its own chapter*

**(Part 1)**

_ Hope had been re-reading the same sentence for the last ten minutes. She had a physics exam in the morning that she should be studying for but her mind was choosing to focus on something else entirely. _

_ Penelope sat across from her wearing nothing but one of Hope’s tank-tops and a pair of panties that she had borrowed. There had been an incident in Chemistry of Magic earlier that afternoon. MG had been trying to show off his ‘awesome’ mad scientist skills and unintentionally created a strange concoction that had left every student in the classroom covered in a thick layer of slime. On the plus side, the class had ended early and they’d all gotten to go back to their rooms to get cleaned up. After throwing away their ruined uniforms and showering, Hope had given Penelope free reign to choose whatever clothing she would like out of her closet while she had changed into a pair of shorts and a soft t-shirt. She had not expected her girlfriend to come out wearing the least amount of clothing that Hope had ever seen her in. Penelope had just smirked at the way Hope’s jaw almost reached the ground before making herself comfortable on the bed and flipping open a textbook. _

_ They’d been sitting in silence since then and Penelope seemed to actually be getting some work done while Hope couldn’t take her eyes off of the vast amount of tan skin on display. _

_ “Do you like what you see babe?” _

_ Hope could hear the smirk on her girlfriend’s lips. The same lips that were so pink and soft and just made to be tasted by Hope’s own. _

_ “Yea I do.” _

_ Green eyes looked up to meet blue and Hope was certain that her expression must look like something akin to desire. Because that’s exactly what she felt while she soaked in the view of her girlfriend, very strong desire. _

_ Penelope closed her homework and laid it carefully on the bedside table beside her then arched an eyebrow and stared at Hope as if to say 'Well what are you gonna do about it?'. _

_ And Hope was more than happy to respond. Dropping her own school supplies on the ground with much less care than Penelope had she crawled up from the foot of the bed and grasped Penelope’s chin before brushing their lips together. Penelope reacted immediately, deepening the kiss and raising her hands to the small of Hope’s back pushing her closer. _

_ When breathing became a problem Hope pulled away slightly and rested her forehead against Penelope’s. She smiled when she saw the flush in her girlfriend's cheeks knowing that everything she was feeling at that moment was because of her. _

_ “You look amazing in my clothes.” _

_ Penelope tightened her hold on Hope’s back and let out a puff of air that the redhead could feel on her lips. _

_ “Mmhmm I look amazing in everything. But I bet I’d look even better with your clothes on the floor.” _

_ As cocky as her one-liner was it still managed to shoot a spark of warmth right below Hope’s stomach. She leaned forward again recapturing Penelope’s mouth with her own and when Penelope’s tongue swiped against her lips asking for entrance Hope readily gave it to her. _

_ Her hands began to move from Penelope’s face to her shoulders and down her waist, tracing every curve until she reached the hem of her tank top that was a little too small on the ravenette’s taller frame. She paused before allowing her fingers to slip under the material and touched the overheated skin beneath it. _

_ A quiet gasp fell from Penelope’s lips and she shivered. _

_ “You can take it off.” _

_ Hope didn’t need to be told twice. She helped Penelope tug the thin top up and over her head then tossed it to the floor. _

_ This was new territory for them. Kissing they had done plenty of as well as some light touching over the clothes but up until now neither had seen the other in any real state of undress. Hope’s eyes widened at the sight in front of her, all of the unexplored area that up until this point she’d only been able to imagine. _

_ “You’re gorgeous Penelope.” _

_ Penelope couldn’t help but blush at the compliment, she would be lying if she said she wasn’t a little nervous. _

_ “Can I…” _

_ Hope lifted her hands hesitantly, unsure of whether or not she was allowed to go any further. But she didn’t have to worry for long because soon Penelope had taken her wrists and guided them towards her chest. The skin under her fingers was so warm, Hope squeezed experimentally and when Penelope’s back arched up into her touch she knew she was doing something right. Continuing to massage the soft flesh she leaned forward and slowly began kissing Penelope again only stopping to push the witch down on the bed. _

_ When they were both in a more comfortable position Hope gently nudged the other girl’s legs apart so that she could slide one of her own between them. She knew from past experiences making-out with Penelope that there was a spot right below her jawline that drove her crazy when Hope applied enough pressure with her lips, so that’s exactly what she did. _

_ “Hope...” _

_ Penelope all but whimpered her name and Hope looked up to find dark green eyes staring back at her. The expression on her face said it all, she wanted more. _

_ Hope pressed her thigh upwards and her bare skin was met with wet heat. Both girls let out a short moan at the feeling so Hope applied a bit more pressure. Kissing a path down the ravenette’s neck she could feel her own breath hitch when she was suddenly at eye level with Penelope’s breasts. Hope only stalled for a moment before she was nibbling and sucking on the soft skin. She felt it when Penelope’s nails dug into her back hard enough to leave small indentations. Hope let out a low groan, it didn’t really hurt but knowing that she was causing such a strong reaction from her girlfriend was making her own pleasure spike. _

_ “Y-you’re wearing too much.” _

_ Penelope was desperately pulling at the fabric still covering Hope. All she wanted was to feel the tribrid’s skin against her own and with a little help from the girl on top of her she finally got her wish. _

_ Hope’s breathing increased tenfold when her bare chest touched Penelope’s for the first time and she couldn’t stop herself from surging forward to reclaim the other girl’s lips with her own. Penelope shuddered at the contact, her fingers finding their way into Hope’s hair and tugging her closer. Her body was quickly taking on a mind of its own, she wasn’t entirely in control anymore and her hips hadn’t stopped grinding against Hope’s thigh since she’d placed it between her legs. Hope had gone back to practically worshiping her chest and it was driving Penelope insane. She was looking for something, anything to give her the friction she craved and she knew her girlfriend could provide it. _

_ “Baby.” _

_ The breathy tone of Penelope’s voice when she used the petname made Hope stop to meet the other girl’s gaze. Emerald green eyes had taken on a very dark hue and were now almost black. Penelope’s cheeks were flushed, her lips swollen and Hope was pretty sure she had never seen her look more stunning. _

_ “I need you.” _

_ Hope knew what she meant but uncertainty still managed to cloud her mind. _

_ “Are you sure?” _

_ Penelope nodded and offered her girlfriend a small smile. _

_ “Yes. I’m sure.” _

_ She whimpered again and the sound was almost painful filling Hope with the urge to do something to help her girlfriend. _

_ “Okay, okay.” _

_ Hope placed another kiss against Penelope’s lips, this one softer and more gentle than the others then let her fingers begin to trail down to the waistband of the witch’s underwear. Her heart was pounding so hard she wouldn’t have been surprised if Penelope could hear it. She was nervous but this was something she wanted badly too and another look into dark green eyes was all it took for her to slip her hand inside the damp fabric. _

_ Wet heat enveloped her fingers and the feeling brought a moan to the back of Hope’s throat. Penelope’s reaction was instant as well, her hips bucking upwards as her hands clenched into fists. She bit down so hard on her bottom lip that Hope worried for a moment that she would make herself bleed. Hope moved slowly at first allowing both of them to adjust to the new sensation. When she started to build speed Penelope began to move with her. It wasn’t going to take long for the ravenette to fall over the edge, she’d already been ridiculously close before Hope had even started touching her. They created a rhythm and even with the tribrid’s inexperience both girls could tell that Penelope was almost there. _

_ “Please.” _

_ Penelope gasped again and Hope tightened her hold on the other girl’s body before leaning down to press her lips against the witch’s ear. _

_ “I’ve got you baby. Let go.” _

_ Hope sped up her movements and watched in awe as Penelope began to fall apart beneath her. Releasing a strangled cry, her eyes squeezed shut tightly as her body tensed then shook. It was amazing and Hope had never seen or felt anything that she could compare it to. _

_ She didn’t start to slow down until Penelope had stopped shaking and her breathing began to even out. Once Hope was sure that she had finished she rolled off of her girlfriend and onto the bed beside her. Penelope immediately turned to curl into Hope’s side. She nuzzled her face into the redhead’s neck and breathed in the scent of vanilla and wet leaves, a smell that was so uniquely Hope’s which made her feel safe. _

_ Hope wrapped an arm around her and pressed a kiss to soft black hair then let her free hand trace shapes onto the smooth skin of Penelope’s back, not ready to stop touching the other girl anytime soon. _

_ “That was...” _

_ She was sure she had a dopey smile playing on her lips as she spoke but she didn’t care and she noticed that when Penelope looked up she was wearing a matching dopey smile of her own. _

_ “Perfect.” _

_ “Yea.” _

_ Penelope lowered her head to Hope’s chest as they allowed a soothing quiet to settle over them. And even though neither girl had said it out loud yet they were both pretty sure that this is what being in love feels like. _

~~~~~~

Penelope hadn’t realized when she got up this morning just what exactly her girlfriend was planning. She knew tonight was the night of the decade’s dance and Josie was leading the charge in terms of decorations and preparing. The brunette had asked Penelope for her help a few days ago and of course the witch would never say no but now she was beginning to think that maybe Josie had some ulterior motives for doing all of this because she was going a little overboard for a school dance.

Penelope had just finished placing flowers on a table that another student had directed her towards when she looked up and caught Josie’s eye from across the room. The siphoner had been giving orders out all day like some kind of oddly sweet drill-sergeant. They hadn’t seen much of each other that morning, Josie was already dressed and gone by the time Penelope had woken up. Not that she was complaining, after what had happened between them the night before, a little space was nice.

Josie offered her a sheepish smile which Penelope returned before she was running off to help a group of vampires who were popping more balloons than they were blowing up.

A laugh from behind her made her turn to see MG trying and failing to stifle the sound.

“What’s so funny?” 

It almost seemed like he was laughing at her but that would be a pretty bold move for someone she hadn’t even had a full conversation with more than a handful of times. They weren’t anything other than classroom acquaintances but she knew he was a good friend of Josie’s so Penelope was willing to hold off on targeting her annoyance towards him for the moment.

“It’s nothing, just thinking about a conversation I had with Josie at breakfast concerning the two of you.”

He said it so nonchalantly, if Penelope wasn’t suspicious before then she was now. She took a step closer to him and watched as the humorous glint in his eye was replaced by uncertainty and a little fear. He gulped and she smirked at her ability to make him uncomfortable.

“Well Milton? Spill.”

“S-she just told me that you guys were getting pretty serious and since tonight is the big dance she thought that maybe…”

Realization dawned on her immediately and Penelope felt like she could slap herself for being so oblivious.

“Oh God, she doesn't think that we’re going to...” 

MG nodded and Penelope let out a quiet groan.

“But isn’t sex after a school dance all just a little-.”

“Cheesy? Cliché? Overly romantic? All things that Josette Saltzmen definitely is.”

In other words, this shouldn’t have been a surprise at all because he was right. This was exactly the kind of fluffy first time that Josie would try to plan. Unfortunately though, Penelope was still pretty sure that she wasn’t ready.

MG’s eyes widened slightly and that was all the warning Penelope got before a hand on the small of her back let her know that Josie was beside her.

“Hey so I talked to Lizzie and she’s going to stay in town with my dad tonight.”

“Oh th-that’s great JoJo.”

She actually stuttered, honestly if she wasn’t so nervous she would be embarrassed. 

MG gave her a knowing look as if to emphasize the meaning behind Josie’s words and the glare Penelope sent him in response was enough to make him run off claiming something about needing to set up the snack table. She was going to strangle him the next time she saw him.

“So are you excited?” 

“For the dance? Definitely.”

Penelope winced at her choice of words seeing the way Josie frowned slightly before taking one of the ravenette's hands in her own.

“Hey what’s going on? You can talk to me, you know.” 

She squeezed Penelope’s hand gently, her eyes so soft and caring it took all of Penelope’s resolve not to break down and tell her the truth right there.

“I'm just nervous I guess.” 

“That's okay, I'm nervous too. I think most normal people are when it's their first time.” 

Josie’s tone was teasing as she tried to lighten the mood and Penelope tried to smile back. But there was something about her saying the words “first time” out loud that seemed to send a wave of fog rolling through the witch’s mind. Penelope’s thoughts were suddenly being replaced with quick flashes and fragmented feelings. It was a ‘vision’, sort of, not an entire scene but small pieces of one.

_ Soft lips and gentle hesitant touches. The building up of pleasure and warmth that made her yearn for more. Hot breath and whispered words of affection on top of sheets that were not her own. The feeling of being loved and safe, surrounded by the smell of wet leaves and vanilla. _

“Penelope?” 

“Sorry, yea?” 

Penelope blushed guiltily like she’d been caught doing something rather inappropriate.

“This is your first time right?”

“I-” 

Josie was staring at her, waiting patiently for an answer but Penelope only felt confused and even more uncertain. 

“I don't know.” 

She replied honestly, hoping that her girlfriend wouldn’t push too hard for an explanation that Penelope couldn’t give. Josie looked at her questioningly then gave a confused laugh.

“How do you not know?” 

“I just don't. I mean I think I might have... with someone. Maybe. But I can't really remember.” 

“Like you were drunk?” 

She doesn’t think she has ever been drunk enough in her life to almost entirely forget having sex with someone. And it didn’t really seem like a blackout memory anyway, from what she could feel, if that experience was real then she had been entirely sober. But how could she tell Josie that? _ “Sorry sweetie I actually don’t think I’m a virgin but I can’t tell you when or who I slept with because my memory is a little fuzzy on the details. It’s all related to these visions I’ve been having which I think might be memories of me dating another girl and I’m pretty sure it has something to do with Hope who I know you can’t stand.” _Yea Penelope was sure the brunette would take all of that information really well.

Lacking a better explanation of her own Penelope shrugged her shoulders and accepted Josie’s suggestion. She wasn’t entirely ready to have sex with her girlfriend, but she was even less ready to have a discussion about the secrets she’d been keeping.

“I guess?” 

“Well then maybe it wasn’t a great experience. It’s probably better that you can't remember. 

Josie placed a kiss on Penelope’s cheek then offered her a comforting smile.

“It’s okay, we can just make new better memories together.” 

Penelope returned her smile and Josie stood with her for another moment before someone from across the room called for her help putting up a banner. They still had a dance to get ready for but now just thinking about it was enough to make Penelope's stomach do an uncomfortable flip.

  
  
  


**(Part 2)**

_ Hope has never been one for dances, they were obnoxious, tacky and made her feel a little anxious. She couldn’t understand why anyone would want to spend the evening stuck in a gym filled with sweaty, horny, uncoordinated teens. She already had to eat, sleep, and study with these people, she really didn't need to be around them during her free time too. _

_ If it were up to her she would be sitting in her quiet dorm room right now finishing the painting she’d started a few days ago. But of course Hope wasn’t entirely in charge of her own decisions anymore, she had a girlfriend now, an amazing girlfriend who forced her out of the hermit shell that she’d been living in all her life and dragged her to events that not too long ago Hope wouldn’t have been caught dead at. _

_ Speaking of her girlfriend, Penelope was currently out on the dance floor surrounded by a group of witches Hope couldn’t be bothered to learn the names of while she stood off to the side watching. They were all following her lead, tracking her movements then copying them, some were actually pretty decent dancers too, not that Hope really noticed, her eyes were glued to Penelope and Penelope only. _

_ She smiled softly to herself, seeing how carefree and happy the ravenette looked filled Hope with a warmth that she only ever felt when she was with the other girl. It pretty much made having to spend her night at a highschool dance worth it. _

_ Penelope turned towards her and smirked when she caught Hope staring. The music slowed and she made her way through the crowd of students towards the tribrid. _

_ “Enjoying the show?” _

_ Hope chuckled and nodded. _

_ “Yea I am, thanks for asking.” _

_ Penelope’s smirk turned into a full-on grin and she stepped into Hope’s space. _

_ “Thank you for coming with me tonight, I know this isn’t really your scene.” _

_ She was close enough that even in the dim lighting Hope could see the way her cheeks had flushed from the heat of being around so many other bodies. She was so beautiful it was almost unfair and Hope had no idea how she’d been lucky enough to get to be her escort. _

_ “There isn’t anywhere I’d rather be.” _

_ A soft melody began to play through the speakers and it was a noticeable difference from the fast-paced club music that had been playing for most of the night. Penelope’s eyes widened when she heard it, recognizing the song immediately. She gave her girlfriend a hopeful look, knowing that Hope wasn’t a dancer, then held out her hand. _

_ “I love this song, will you dance with me please?” _

_ Ordinarily Hope would say no because she hated dancing in public. It was embarrassing, the fact that so many people could watch as she potentially makes a fool of herself. But standing there with Penelope waiting expectantly, Hope wasn’t as nervous as she usually would be. She sighed then placed her hand in her girlfriend’s allowing herself to be pulled through the mass of people and towards the center of the dance floor. _

_ Penelope stopped once they’d gotten to an empty space and guided Hope’s arms around her waist then settled her own around the shorter girls' shoulders. They said nothing for a few moments just swaying together slowly and letting the music wash over them. Hope realized quickly that she didn’t actually care about anyone else in the room with them, when she was standing with Penelope in her arms everyone else disappeared. _

_ The song reached its course and Penelope leaned in closer, resting her head against Hope’s then quietly began to sing the words she knew well. _

** _I was made for loving you_ **

** _Even though we may be hopeless hearts just passing through_ **

** _Every bone screaming I don't know what we should do_ **

** _All I know is, darling, I was made for loving you_ **

_ Hope smiled and tightened her hold on the witch’s waist. She loved Penelope’s voice, it was soothingly low and never failed to relax her. Penelope didn’t sing often or in front of people but she would for Hope if her girlfriend ever asked her to. It was one of many private things that were special for just the two of them. _

_ They continued to move gently side to side until the song came to an end and Penelope’s voice tapered off. Hope pulled back and both girls smiled softly, completely lost in each other, then she leaned in and placed a tender kiss on Penelope’s lips. _

_ “I love you.” _

_ Her words were barely a whisper but Penelope still heard them and her smile widened. She reached her hand up to cup Hope’s cheek bringing the shorter girl’s face back towards her own and responded with another kiss. _

_ “I love you too.” _

~~~~~~

Hope and Lizzie burst through the doors of Salvatore school, panting and out of breath. They had sprinted the last three miles from town after realizing just how late it was. 

They made their way to the great hall and stopped when they reached it to take everything in. The room was decorated beautifully, Josie and her team had really gone all out and if the smiles on all of the students' faces were anything to go by then everyone seemed to be really enjoying themselves.

The last time Hope had gone to a dance she’d been with Penelope and even though she hadn’t thought that she would like it she actually ended up having a good time. But that probably had more to do with her girlfriend than the event itself. Now Hope was pretty sure that she would rather be just about anywhere else. 

Both girls scanned the room trying to find the two people they were there to stop, Lizzie managed to spot them first and pointed a finger in their direction.

“There!”

Hope looked up just in time to watch Josie lean in and kiss Penelope. The moment their lips met she felt her heart drop into her stomach. It’s not like this was the first time she’d seen them do it but it never got any easier.

Lizzie cringed and looked away, not wanting to see the two girls kiss any more than Hope did. She saw the look of hurt in the tribrid’s eyes and she couldn’t imagine how hard it must be for her friend to have to see this.

“Well go on.” 

She nudged Hope in their direction but it was like something had frozen her to the spot because she didn't move at all.

“I can’t.” 

“What do you mean? Yes you can. Just walk up to them and tell them the truth.” 

Hope shook her head sadly and Lizzie stared down at her confused. This was the whole reason they had come back here, so why wasn’t Hope doing something?

A moment later Josie was stepping back from Penelope and taking her hand, leading her out of the room. Lizzie could only assume that they were heading towards the twins’ shared dorm which meant that they were missing their chance to step in and intervene before her sister had sex with a demon. But she felt like she was the only one who realized how wrong this was because Hope didn’t even seem to care.

“Hope! What the hell? We literally killed ourselves just to get back here and you didn’t go through with it.” 

Lizzie was annoyed and Hope understood why but she just couldn’t do what the blonde wanted her to.

“Lizzie I can't stop them, it just wouldn't be right. Even if I tell them who I am they still won't remember me, I can't change that no matter how much I wish I could. I don't want to hurt them and I won’t ever intentionally hurt Penelope. They look happy together and who knows maybe this is how it was always meant to be. Maybe me and Pen were just a temporary thing. If that's the case then I can't risk messing with fate just because the girl I love is in love with someone else. I just can’t.” 

Hope sighed and watched despondently as Penelope disappeared from her sight.

“Oh Hope.” 

Lizzie gathered the smaller girl into her arms and pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

“That's the stupidest excuse I've ever heard.” 

Hope laughed and tried to hold back a sob. 

“But if you're really sure that you're okay with this then I’m not going to force you. I guess I'll have to get used to Satan dating my sister.” 

Lizzie shuddered dramatically and Hope hugged the ridiculous girl tighter, grateful to not be alone even if this wasn’t the girl she wishes was holding her. She felt awful about her decision not to interfere and she wasn’t sure if she was doing the right thing. Destiny and fate were both dumb ideas and she knew that but if there was even a chance that they existed and if Penelope was meant to be with her like Hope wanted to believe then somehow they would find their way back together, they had to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *the song Penelope sang is "I was made for loving you" by Tori Kelly
> 
> don't forget to kudos/comment :)


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter is very sweet but also hurts, a lot

The door to Josie’s dorm had barely enough time to swing shut before she had Penelope pressed up against it, kissing her roughly. Eager hands were already groping under clothing and touching the heated skin beneath. 

They were moving quicker than Penelope would have liked but there hadn’t been a lot of time for her to really think anything through. Only moments before they’d been out on the dance floor swaying softly to the music and now they were about to do something that would ultimately change the dynamic of their relationship and she still wasn’t even sure if this was something that she wanted.

Penelope gently pushed away giving herself enough space to guide the two of them over to Josie’s bed. She allowed Josie to push her down onto the mattress and blushed when the brunette smirked at how flustered she’d become. 

Josie leaned in and pressed another kiss to the corner of Penelope’s mouth, allowing her lips to linger there then she sighed.

“I'll be right back, I just need to run to the bathroom. Don't move.” 

Her fingers trailed the length of Penelope’s bare arms, her eyes full of longing and Penelope watched as she reluctantly turned to leave the room.

Josie’s exit meant that Penelope now had a few minutes to get her thoughts in order. Her head felt like it was spinning. She knew this wasn't a good idea, knew that she should tell Josie that they shouldn't do this but she couldn't think of a reasonable excuse why. They’ve already gotten this far, the brunette was expecting to seal the deal tonight and Penelope wasn’t sure if she had the strength to tell her the truth, especially knowing how hurt Josie would probably be.

She closed her eyes for a moment trying to will her anxieties away. Her breathing was becoming shaky as the seconds passed, Josie would be back at any moment. This could not be a healthy way to share their first time. 

Her thoughts were racing again when for some inexplicable reason blue eyes and red hair began to flood her mind. All of this was going too fast and felt too wrong, she couldn’t do it, she needed to leave. Before her conscience could try and stop her Penelope had stood up from the bed and made a beeline for the door.

~~~~~~

Penelope ran as fast as her legs would carry her, through the school and outside into the warm night air. Her lungs burned but she didn’t stop until she was under the tree where she and Josie had their study date and where she had her first vision. It wasn’t intentional, when she ran she had no idea where she would end up but now that she was there she couldn’t imagine being anywhere else. 

Penelope collapsed to the ground trying to take deep breaths, her heart beating so quickly it was like a jackhammer in her chest. Her throat felt tight like she wasn’t getting enough air and she was pretty sure that she was about to suffocate. 

A panic attack, she was having a full-blown panic attack and she had no idea how to calm herself down.

“Pen?” 

A voice filtered through the noise in her brain and for a moment Penelope felt like she was finally remembering something, something huge, something so important it would turn her whole world upside down. But then in an instant, it was gone and she was left with the panic again. “Penelope breathe, just breathe.” 

There was a person crouching down beside her, her hands on Penelope's shoulders and Penelope recognized the blue eyes and auburn hair. 

“H-Hope?” 

“Yea it's me but don't talk right now. Just focus on taking nice even breaths, just like me okay?” Penelope nodded and tried to follow Hope's breathing pattern staring at the other girl's face while she did and Hope never broke eye contact. 

“There you go, good job. Just nice easy breaths. You're okay.” 

Penelope would normally hate for anyone to see her that vulnerable, she didn't want anyone thinking she's weak. But for some reason with Hope she didn't mind. In fact she preferred having the girl there with her. 

“Better?”

“Better.” 

Penelope gave her a small smile and Hope returned it. After she was sure that Penelope had made it through the worst part of the attack Hope sat next to her on the grass. They said nothing at first, the two of them just staring up at the sky, the still silence of the night a nice change from the chaos that was Penelope's current thoughts.

“Why are you out here?”

The witch asked quietly and Hope turned to look at her.

“I just needed to clear my head a little. It's kind of loud in there.” 

She gestured towards the school and Penelope nodded in understanding. 

“Why are you out here?” 

“I ran away from my girlfriend because I didn't want to have sex with her.” 

Penelope slapped a hand over her mouth realizing what she had just said and Hope looked at her with wide eyes. 

“Oh.” 

It’s not like there is a social etiquette or procedure to follow after a statement like that and Hope had no idea what the appropriate response was but she didn’t need to overthink it because as soon as her eyes met Penelope’s they both erupted into a fit of giggles. 

“I'm s-sorry this really isn't funny and I shouldn't have told you that, we barely know each other and that was definitely too much information.” 

“It's okay I don't mind really.” 

As they calmed down Hope noticed that she was a lot lighter now than when she had first walked out of the school. She felt bad that Penelope was in such an awkward position but she'd be lying if she said she wasn't a little grateful that they hadn't slept together. 

“So how long are you planning to hide from her?” 

Penelope let her fingers run through a patch of grass beside her, it was still damp from the short rain shower that they’d gotten earlier that afternoon and the cool temperature of it was keeping her grounded.

“I haven't decided yet. I don't really know why I'm hiding to be honest. I mean Josie is... She's amazing honestly and I'm so lucky to have her but no matter how hard I try for some reason everything just feels off, like something is...” 

“Missing?” 

“Yea.” 

Blue and green eyes stared into each other and Penelope couldn’t explain why but it was like even though she was sitting right next to Hope she wasn't really seeing her, like there was some kind fog surrounding them, some kind of unspoken truth that she still had yet to be told. It was as confusing as it was annoying and she didn’t know how to put the feeling into words.

Hope looked back up at the sky then but Penelope didn't stop watching her. 

“I love the stars. They're billions of miles away and yet somehow they manage to shine just bright enough for us to see. Did you know that when a star dies we can still see the light for millions of years afterwards. Isn't that amazing?”

Penelope nodded because she did think that it was pretty amazing, almost as amazing as the girl sitting next to her. _ Woah where the hell did that thought come from? _

“Do you know the constellations?” 

She realized Hope had turned back to her and was waiting for a response so Penelope shook her head. She hadn’t really thought about the night sky very much until this point but now she was kind of wishing that she had because Hope gave her a sad smile as if her answer wasn't the one she was hoping to hear. 

“That's okay, let me show you. Do you see those seven stars right there? They kind of look like a soup ladle. That's Ursa Minor or the little dipper.” 

Hope looked at Penelope smiling as she pointed to a cluster of stars that vaguely looked like the shape of a spoon and Penelope couldn't help but smile back.

“Cool.” 

“Very cool.”

Somehow sitting and looking up at the stars with Hope had calmed Penelope down enough to where she was barely thinking about the situation that had driven her there in the first place. Instead she found herself wanting to know more about the pretty redhead, any details that Hope was willing to share Penelope would gladly cherish.

“Which one is your favorite?”

Hope didn’t even hesitate, her eyes sparkled and she absolutely beamed at Penelope and the ravenette was fairly certain that she hadn’t ever seen a more beautiful sight.

“That’s easy, definitely Andromeda because I like the story that goes along with it.” 

_ As quickly as the words left Hope’s mouth Penelope found the world around her shifting ever so slightly. It took her a moment to realize that something had changed and she wasn’t in her version of reality anymore. She was still under the tree and staring up at the sky but now someone was cuddled into her back holding her with one arm around her waist while the other pointed to different constellations. She relaxed into them letting her head fall back against their chest as they explained the story behind the mass of stars. _

_ “Andromeda was the daughter of king Aethiopian and queen Cepheus. She was gorgeous which made the queen super narcissistic. She started telling everyone that her daughter was the most beautiful creature in the world, even more beautiful than a sea nymph.” _

_ “A sea nymph?” _

_ Penelope interrupted but the person behind her, a girl, shushed her. _

_ “Hush, yes a sea nymph. Anyway that annoyed the hell out of Poseidon so he decided to teach queen Cepheus a lesson by chaining Andromeda to a rock and sending a sea monster to kill her.” _

_ “That’s a little harsh.” _

_ Penelope winced and the girl hummed in agreement. _

_ “There’s a happy ending though because Perseus just happened to fly by on Pegasus and fell in love with Andromeda. He asked Cepheus if he could marry her daughter and after she agreed he killed the sea monster and saved his girl.” _

_ “Of course he did. And let me guess I'm Andromeda in this story and you get to be the badass God who comes to rescue the damsel in distress?” _

_ She hears a chuckle from behind her before a kiss is placed on the top of her head while Penelope rolls her eyes in annoyance. _

_ “Demigod actually but yea that's kind of how I like to think of it.” _

_ “Oh well then that makes all the difference, my tiny hero.” _

_ “Hey I'm not that much shorter than you, you know.” _

_ Fingers dig into her sides tickling her and Penelope tries to shift away but only manages to lean further into the girl’s embrace. Her laughter rings out clearly in the quiet night and is soon accompanied by the laughs of the person holding her. _

“Penelope?” 

Hope calls for her attention and Penelope is brought back to the present. 

“Sorry I'm fine, just remembering something I guess.” 

Hope offers her an understanding smile, her eyes seemingly searching for something in Penelope’s face before she sighs and stands up. 

“I think we've both hidden for long enough.” 

She brushes off her skirt before reaching out her hand to pull Penelope up next to her.

“Yea, I think you're right.” 

Neither girl really wants to leave but it’s getting late and they both have people expecting them. Penelope stares at the pretty redhead for another moment before forcing herself to look away. It hurts, like an aching in the deepest part of her and she doesn’t understand it but she knows that it has everything to do with the girl she still knows so little about.

She would give anything to stay outside looking at the stars but life has other plans so taking a deep breath Penelope steps away from Hope and towards the school where the brunette she all but abandoned is probably waiting for her.

“Goodnight Hope” 

“Goodnight Penelope”

~~~~~~

She felt like she was walking on cloud nine. Talking to Hope brought out a level of comfort and safety that Penelope never felt with anyone else. She wasn’t sure if the redhead spent as much time thinking about her as she did but Penelope liked to hope so. She was so lost in her thoughts about the other girl that she didn’t immediately notice Josie sitting outside her dorm until the brunette had looked up to meet her gaze. The expression on her face was so broken it managed to shatter Penelope’s heart a million times over.

Josie stood up from her place on the floor and without saying a word the two of them walked into Penelope's room and sat on her bed like they had so many times before except that now the distance between them felt huge despite them being only a few feet apart.

“I'm sorry.” 

Penelope spoke quietly, not looking at Josie even though she could feel brown eyes staring into her head. 

“I couldn't do it.” 

“So why didn't you talk to me? Why did you just run away?” 

Hearing the pain in Josie's voice Penelope looked up and instantly wished that she hadn't. Tears filled brown eyes and it was easy to see that Josie was trying unsuccessfully not to cry. 

“Jo I-'' 

Penelope's tongue was so dry her words felt like they were caught in her throat but she still pushed forward.

“I panicked. It wasn't you, I swear Josie, you're amazing and God I'm so lucky to have you but I just couldn't have sex with you, I can't.” 

She stopped and Josie sat quietly picking at a loose thread in the blanket, thinking. 

“I'm sorry if I pressured you, I know I came off a little strong. I should've known from the way you kept pulling away...” 

She trailed off then and a tear broke free rolling down her cheek. Penelope wanted so desperately to lean in and wipe it away but she no longer felt like it was her place.

“What should you have known JoJo?” 

Her voice was soft and Josie gave her a sad smile at the use of the nickname.

“That you don't love me, not like that anyway.” 

It was like all of the air got sucked out of the room in that instant and then blown back in just as quickly. Penelope’s heart sped up almost painfully and tears of her own threatened to start falling. 

“It's okay Pen, really it is. Somewhere out there somebody is waiting for you, a person who was made especially for you, who knows you better than you know yourself and loves you with everything they have and it's okay if that person isn't me.” 

Josie took Penelope's hand and squeezed it gently.  
“It's okay because my somebody is out there too and one day hopefully I'll be lucky enough to meet them. Then all of this will just seem like a distant not so painful memory.” 

“Josie-” 

“We'll be okay Penelope, I'll be okay.” 

She didn’t want Penelope to feel guilty about this, sometimes people just aren’t meant to be together. They had been trying to force it for long enough that now Josie was able to recognize that they were just never going to work. It hurt, of course it did, but these wounds would heal and they would be better off as a result.

Josie leaned in then and placed a gentle kiss on Penelope's lips. This one was far softer than any of the others they had shared. There was something final about it, this would be the last time they would allow themselves to do this and they both knew it. Penelope kissed her back and tried to convey every ounce of remorse she felt. She could taste the salt on both of their mouths and when Josie pulled away her cheeks were red and covered in the dampness of her tears. She gave Penelope another sad smile then stood from the bed.

Her eyes closed for a moment as she collected herself and stepped towards the door.

“I really hope you find her Pen, whoever she is.” 

She said it without turning around before walking out and closing the door behind her.

Penelope isn’t sure how long she stared after her before she flopped back onto her bed, finally letting her tears fall freely and allowing her pain to flow now that she was alone. Because she was in pain, maybe not about her relationship being over, it had been doomed from the start, but definitely about the fact that she had hurt Josie. Sweet Josie with the kind words and big doe eyes. She deserved better, someone who cared for her as deeply as she cared for them, Penelope hoped she would find better. 

She lifts her hands up to her face and wipes the tears from her eyes. This isn’t how things should have worked out. Why couldn’t she have just been content with the beautiful brunette? What was so wrong with her that she had been incapable of letting herself be happy?

Her eyes drift around her room and land on the white t-shirt hanging off of the back of her desk chair, it had been the provocation for one of her earliest ‘visions’. And then it makes sense. How was she supposed to love another person when her mind was constantly being filled with images of a mystery girl that she couldn’t remember but who had obviously been a large part of her life at some point. She was being set up to fail.

As she lies there thinking about the mess of feelings, thoughts, and memories that have been overwhelming her for the last several weeks she can’t help but be reminded of the one thing that has remained constant, the one thing that always seems to be around when she’s at her lowest and that triggers an eruption of emotions that she doesn’t understand, Hope. 

And then Penelope thinks that maybe the answer to all of her questions has been a lot closer than she first believed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if i could give you one warning for the next several chapters it would be to prepare for a lot of angst. in fact, i've been listening to "wrong direction" by hailee steinfeld while writing so if you're interested in understanding my headspace right now then i would recommend giving that a listen 
> 
> don't forget to kudos/comment :)  
twitter: @posiewaves


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